Be Her Wings
by Cakedecorator
Summary: Marinette is the adopted daughter of the Bourgeois family, but she has to cope with the constant torment from her "sister" Chloé. Rather than wait around for things to change, she plans on making things better for herself somehow. But one day, she meets a fairy named Adrien and she learns that magic exists in more than just the Miraculous. Rated T, Season 2/3 Spoilers
1. Encounters of the Magical Kind

**Okay! Back by some demand of a few of my readers, "Be Her Wings" is BACK and back to stay! Now, let's start from scratch!**

**Once upon a time, a woman was planting flowers in her garden, and quietly wished for a child of her own, even if she were no bigger than her thumb... And as if her wish were granted, a small girl the size of her thumb was born out of one of her tulips. And so the woman named her baby girl... **

**HAH! Had you going there, huh? Well, I'm not going to put our Marinette in a stereotypical damsel-in-distress position like ****_that! _****I'm twisting the story in a lot of ways, not the least of which being that Marinette's the size of an average human girl. **

**Here's how the story's ****_really_**** going to go down: Marinette's still your basic high-schooler who still has her Miraculous as Ladybug, but Marinette's family isn't Tom and Sabine - she was orphaned about three years prior to this story and was hence adopted by the Bourgeois family! While André and Audrey treat her well enough (Audrey has nothing but good things to say about Marinette and her design talents and skills), whenever it's just Marinette and Chloé, Chloé never makes any secret of her disdain towards the designer, to the point of abuse. **

**Instead of waiting around for things to look up or for someone to save her, Marinette shows resilience and makes efforts to improve her life on her own, and always has people to confide in, Tikki especially. **

**But one night as she's humming, she winds up meeting Adrien, the prince of the fairies (who IS the size of an average teenage human age by default), who's been secretly sweet on her and watching her.  
**

**Songs included (in pieces, whole, with or without modified lyrics)  
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Cinderella (1950)  
Let Me Be Your Wings - Thumbelina soundtrack**

* * *

_People don't necessarily believe in fairies, do they? Then riddle me this: if abstract creatures called kwamis can interact with humans thanks to being connected to magical jewelry, then why can't fairies be real, either? _

_Contrary to the story of "Thumbelina," fairies aren't the tiniest things that've ever existed. In fact, fairies are likely to be hiding in plain sight. You may even be sitting next to one right now and not even know it! Because fairies are only tiny when they need to be, otherwise they're the same size as us people. And fairies only need to be tiny when they're working in the realm of nature. _

_When they're not working in the flower fields or any other form of nature around the world, fairies are living amongst the humans,_ as_ humans, trying to help preserve the planet. They're willing to cause misfortune to the mass populace at large every now and again to prove a point. _

_Our story stars a beautiful human girl, whom I'm sure you know quite well as Marinette Dupain-Cheng, secretly the heroine of Paris, France known as Ladybug, and owner of the Ladybug Miraculous... And how she learns that magic doesn't just exist in the Miraculous..._

The star-sparkled night sky of Paris, France was unassuming and normal. But then several small speckles of light whooshed across the sky like shooting stars and if one listened closely, they'd hear the chuckles and giggles of people.

The morning broke and all was quiet in Paris. In the beautiful, ornately-decorated lobby of the Grand Paris hotel, a girl of about seventeen, wearing a dark gray blazer over a white floral print shirt, pink pants, red flats, and a clutch purse was walking around. She had her black hair in pigtails and she had blue eyes.

The girl looked in her backpack and took out a dress she'd finished. Or rather, she'd just finished it and then the _true_ daughter of the house, Chloé Bourgeois, went and deliberately ruined it before the lady of the family, Audrey, could see it. It was completely torn and ripped in places and there were deliberate stains made on the dress.

"Chloé did it again," She quietly whined. "Why does she always do this to me?"

"I think she's just jealous of you, Marinette," A small red creature with dark blue eyes, eyelashes, and a black spot on both sides of her head and on top of her head said. "You're so resilient, and you've really gotten good at sticking up for yourself recently."

"Thanks, Tikki," Marinette said as she kept looking around for Chloé. "But I'm just gonna get to school before she rears her ugly head again."

So, instead of waiting around for her adoptive sister, Marinette just ran out of the hotel. The doorman paid her no mind and Marinette started to run to school.

As she ran by a few flowers outside the hotel, her movements caused the flowers to move along with the breeze she created. A speckle of sparkling light flew off the flower petal before hanging there a second and flying off into the sky.

Later on at the school, the girl arrived inside the building and she was looking around for someone. Someone she could trust and confide in. And she knew just the person.

"Marinette!" A girl with shoulder-length dark red hair with lighter tips, tan skin, hazel eyes behind black glasses, wearing an orange flannel shirt and blue jeans said as she ran up to Marinette.

"Hey, Alya." Marinette said as she opened up her backpack.

"Chloé give you a piece of her mind again, girl?" Alya Césaire, head of the school blog and runner of the Ladyblog said as she saw her pigtailed bestie with a disheartened look on her face.

Marinette merely gave a nod as she held the ruined dress up for Alya to see, and said, "Yes."

"Girl, you're not changing my mind! Leave the hotel and move in with me and my family!" Alya said.

"And you're not changing _my_ mind either," Marinette said. "I can't do that yet. You and your parents have enough mouths in the house to feed. I'd only be in the way."

"No you wouldn't, Marinette!" Alya said. "I've already talked to my parents about it and they said that they'd do whatever they can to help you and keep Chloé away from you! Hell, Nora was even talking about beating up the mayor on your behalf!"

"No way! Nor - er, Anansi would get into _major_ trouble! Then Mrs. Bourgeois's going to think I put Anansi up to it, she'll condemn me as a designer and then I'll never work in the industry!" Marinette began.

"Girl, you're getting upset over nothing again," Alya said. "That woman hardly gives Chloé the time of day because you deserve all the praise she gives you and your designs."

"Which is probably why Chloé's had it out for me ever since the Bourgeoises took me in," Marinette muttered. "But it won't be forever. Once I hit eighteen, I'm getting a job and moving out. So I'm just gonna keep working on my portfolio and resumé for the time being."

"That's the spirit! Instead of waiting around for something to happen, you're preparing yourself to make things happen on your own. And once you're employed and out of that hotel, _then_ you can come live with me and my family!" Alya said.

"I think that's a fair deal." Marinette said with a smile.

The girls laughed a bit before rendezvousing with the rest of their friends - Rose, Juleka, Myléne, and Alix. They've always been there for Marinette since day one. They'd often help her out whenever she had problems, listening to her when she needed it (especially on her rants about Chloé), modeling whatever designs survived Chloé's wrath and even going to her for help, since she was the class president.

"Hey Marinette!" Rose said, ever the bubbly one. She was of average height with short blonde hair and large periwinkle eyes, wearing mostly pink.

"Hi girls." Marinette said as she and Alya sat in the middle of the group. She sighed a bit.

"You okay?" Juleka asked.

"I've been better," Marinette said as she took out the dress that Chloé ruined. "Another one of my pieces ruined by the Queen Witch. Good thing I took pictures."

"Yeah, pictures are great, but seeing the real thing would've been so much better! I don't understand why you don't just tell Mayor and Mrs. Bourgeois what's going on!" Alix, the short, pink-haired tomboy of the group stated.

The others were murmuring in agreement.

"The mayor never takes responsibility or disciplines Chloé and Mrs. Bourgeois doesn't even care what goes on with her. I'd probably get two different reactions, but no _action_ would be taken... Why'd they take me in anyway?" Marinette explained.

"Well, I seem to remember Mrs. Bourgeois going on and on about how she'd be "taking in an exceptional designer who deserves all the resources the Bourgeois family can provide," or something like that." Alya said.

"At least Chloé's _mother_ sees just how talented and skilled you are, Marinette," Rose said. "And she's the queen of fashion, so that's saying a lot."

Marinette sighed and hugged her legs, nodding in response to her friends' comments before saying, "Thanks. You girls are the best friends I've ever had."

The girls shared a group hug, happy that Marinette valued them as much as they did her.

"Hey, do you wanna know what _I_ think you need to help you get through life?" Rose asked. "A _boyfriend!_"

"A boyfriend? Me?" Marinette asked, pointing to herself.

"Rose's totally right! Me and Nino are tight!" Alya said.

"Yeah! Nothing to help you forget your troubles than a boyfriend!" Myléne said. "Look at me and Ivan! And it's all thanks to _you_, Marinette!"

"No way, girls! A boyfriend... I've never thought of that." Marinette said.

"Well, a boyfriend would be the _perfect person_ to design clothes for," Alya said. "Someone you can get offload your artwork on!"

"That'd be great... Anyone in mind?" Marinette jokingly asked.

"What about Luka?" Rose asked. "He seems fond of you!"

Juleka nodded in agreement while Marinette blushed at the notion. Luka, Juleka's older brother. There were _definitely_ sparks between the pigtailed designer and the older guitar player, but...

"I... I don't know," Marinette said. "I mean, he's nice, cool... And he's quite the looker, but..."

"Don't rush into this, girl. And besides, once you get a boyfriend, you can make clothes for him. Artworks that Chloé wouldn't ruin." Alya said.

"That'd be a dream come true... Chloé never picking on me or ruining my designs..." Marinette said.

"Girl, when you get back home today, you're going to tell Mrs. Bourgeois what Chloé's been doing to you and your clothes! Don't question me on this!" Alya said.

"Amen! Your GF's aren't going to stand by and let this happen to you!" Alix commented.

"...You're right. I'm going to say something to Mrs. Bourgeois when I get back." Marinette said.

"That's the way, girl! You're going to be fine!" Alya said.

Some flowers were nearby the girls, and a few sparkles of light flew off the petals and floated around the air. One sparkle hung around and seemed to be interested in Marinette. The light flew off, almost as if remembering something.

As the girls kept talking and gossiping about nothing in particular, the peace was disturbed when there was a huge explosion on the third floor of the building and smoke billowed out of the broken window.

This could've only meant one of two things: someone caused an explosion in the chemistry lab _or_ an akuma was on the attack. And judging by the running and screaming students, it was the latter.

"Ooh! A scoop for the Ladyblog! Ladybug and Cat Noir should be showing up any second!" Alya said, taking her phone out and running to the action scene. Rose and the others did the safe thing and ran for cover.

Marinette started to run for the girls' room.

"Marinette, what are you doing?!" Alix shouted.

"I uh... Thought I'd take shelter in the girls' room!" Marinette shouted as she ran off to go and hide.

Just as she'd told Alix, Marinette ducked into the girls room and ran into one of the stalls. After checking to see if anyone else was there, she let Tikki out of her bag.

_"Tikki, spots on!" _Marinette shouted as she activated her Miraculous. After transforming, she was now wearing a skin-tight red jumpsuit with black spots and a matching domino mask.

She took the yo-yo off her hips and she zipped off to the rescue, muttering, "Cat Noir better hurry up!"

* * *

In a large, ornate mansion near the hotel, one could see a boy at one of the large windows. He had blonde hair that was swept back and lime green eyes. he was looking out the window sadly He was also wearing casual clothing, and he had a thick, silver band on his right ring finger.

His phone started going off and he pulled up a live news feed.

"This just in: an akuma is attacking at the François-Dupont Lycée! Please evacuate the area or take shelter as soon as possible." Nadja Chamack, the news anchor said on the phone.

"Time to get to work, Plagg!" The boy said.

"Come on, Adrien," A small black creature that looked like a cat with green eyes said, addressing the boy. "You can't just slack off this one time?"

"No! _Plagg, claws out!" _Adrien shouted.

He then transformed, and he was wearing a black suit with gloves that had claws on it, black boots with silver tops for his toes, a silver baton on his back, black cat ears on his messy blonde hair, and a mask that covered the top half of his face and made his eyes look like those of a cat.

He leaped out the window and ran off to go and fight off the akuma.

The black cat hero arrived at the school, only to find Ladybug spinning her yo-yo to defend herself from small particle bombs and chemical beakers.

This time the villain was called Chemist. Basically, a student was retaking a chemistry assignment, but he kept making mistakes and he'd gotten so angry and frustrated at how many times he needed to start over just to get the stupid thing done. As a result, he'd been akumatized and was now another one of Hawk Moth's puppets.

He filled a beaker with more chemicals and he threw them at the superheroes. Ladybug raised her yo-yo shield and blocked the chemical assault. The blast knocked the pair back, and the fumes from the compounds were causing them to choke a bit.

"Ugh... It's stuff like this that's killing the planet!" Cat Noir muttered while trying to breathe.

This wasn't the first time Cat Noir complained about things that were killing the planet or depleting its resources. He clearly cared about the Earth and wanted to make sure he made a point about it. Ladybug didn't mind his rants. She cared, too.

"The akuma's *cough* gotta be in the safety goggles!" Ladybug wheezed.

The pair jumped back into the fight.

With a Cataclysm from Cat Noir, some surgical masks from the nurse's office to help their breathing, a rope to make a trip-wire and a giant container of pancake batter (Ladybug's Lucky Charm), they managed to trick Chemist into tripping onto the rope and landing fast-first into the vat of pancake batter. When he tried to get out, he was blinded by the pancake batter on the goggles and then Ladybug snatched them off.

She released and cleansed the akuma.

"Bye-bye, little butterfly. _Miraculous Ladybug!_" Ladybug shouted as she and Cat Noir threw the vat into the air. The magical ladybugs cleaned up the entire mess and repaired all the damage. Even all the air got cleaned up like nothing happened and the two superheroes could breathe again.

"Geez... That was bad for the lungs," Cat Noir complained. "I can only imagine how bad it's gotta be for people with asthma."

"No kidding," Ladybug said, but then there were some beeping noises heard. "Oh, we'd better split!"

"Right. See you next time, m'lady." Cat Noir said before taking out his baton and leaping away. Ladybug also swung away.

Once Cat Noir leaped back into his bedroom, he shut the window and he said, _"Claws in." _

His kwami flew out and he flew over to his cheese stash to get more camembert. He started chewing on it.

"Well, that was toxic," Adrien said. "Messing around with chemicals is dangerous enough. But add in an akumatization and it's going to get even _more_ dangerous."

"Do all you fairies have this environmentalist mindset?" Plagg complained.

"Yes, we do. It's hard-wired in our brains and hearts," Adrien said as he sat down. "And I'd be doing a much better job at it if I wasn't confined to this mansion all the time, only sneaking out to fight akumas."

"Not _only_ to fight akumas. You sometimes sneak out just to see a certain someone, whom you haven't even _talked to_ yet." Plagg pointed out.

"...No argument there." Adrien said with a sigh.

Night had fallen, and Marinette was now standing outside Mrs. Bourgeois's office. She knew that her adoptive mother probably wouldn't like the interruption from her, but Marinette felt that it was better than nothing.

She knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Mrs. Bourgeois asked.

"It's Marinette." Marinette said.

"Come in." Mrs. Bourgeois said with a smile in her voice.

Marinette came in and saw Mrs. Bourgeois typing on her computer, working on the next issue of Style Queen magazine.

"Hi, Mrs. Bourgeois," Marinette said, still not comfortable with calling her "mom." "I... I need to talk to you about something."

"If it's got nothing to do with your works, which I'm _dying_ to see, then make it fast." Audrey said as she continued to type.

"Well..." Marinette said, before explaining everything.

_"RIDICULOUS! UTTERLY RIDICULOUS!" _Audrey screamed, indignant. Marinette's eyes were wider than teacup saucers. She knew this was the reaction she'd get. "That girl has no right to ruin your exceptional work! Marinette, go to your room! I'll make sure Chloé doesn't do this anymore! And André won't hesitate to obey me and keep Chloé in line."

Audrey slammed her laptop shut and stormed out of her room in the hotel her phone in hand and calling up André.

"Well... That went better than expected," Tikki said, a little spooked by Audrey's temper. "At least Audrey's got your back."

"Yeah, _that's_ what I'm worried about," Marinette said as she walked back to her room in the hotel. "Once Chloé finds out, she'll be even _worse_."

"Why not lock your door and work on some designs and forget about it?" Tikki suggested.

"Good idea." Marinette said, always grateful for Tikki.

Later on, Adrien was still in his room. He was reading a book - a novel about Hans Christian Anderson's life and how he came to write fairytales - but he was getting bored. He looked out the window and saw that the sun was setting. The boy smiled and he said, "Well, time to get back out there."

"You _just_ got back from that akuma attack, and you wanna go back out again?" Plagg asked.

"Yeah, Plagg. I want to see her again..." Adrien said, a blush dusting his face.

"Ladybug?" Plagg asked.

"No, not Ladybug," Adrien said. "You know who I mean."

"Oh, that girl who lives at the hotel? The pigtailed one?" Plagg asked.

"Yep." Adrien said. He then closed his eyes, and he grew a pair of sleek, sparkling wings on his back that were fluttering at the speed of a hummingbird. He shrunk down to the size of an adult's thumb and on his waist he had a sheath with a sword.

"Remember what to do, Plagg?" Adrien asked.

"I know the drill. Stay hidden and keep the door locked." Plagg said as he opened up a cabinet and started eating camembert.

Adrien cracked a window open and he flew out.

Marinette had finished sketching out a few dresses, hats, and whatnot, not really going anywhere. She'd had a few works-in-progress scattered around her room, too. Her mind was wandering, worried about what'd happen later in the future. She just hoped Audrey would keep her word and put a stop to Chloé's torment. Otherwise, Marinette intended on taking matters into her own hands.

"You okay, Marinette?" Tikki asked.

"Not really, no," Marinette said as she put her sketchbook down and stopped working on her designs. She stood up and stretched. "I... I've just been thinking."

"About what?" Tikki asked.

Marinette walked out onto the balcony of her room and she shut the door. She looked up to the starry sky and sighed sadly.

"I'm thinking that maybe the girls are right... Maybe getting a boyfriend wouldn't be a bad idea. At least having someone to love will help me cope with things until I turn eighteen." Marinette said.

"You've got a thing for Luka, right? Why not ask him out the first chance you get?" Tikki asked.

"I would, but... I guess I'm just scared," Marinette began before letting out a sad sigh. _"A dream is a wish your heart makes when you're fast asleep..." _

A speckle of light was flying around, but as if hearing Marinette, it stopped and hovered nearby.

_"In dreams you will lose your heartaches... __Whatever you wish for you keep." _Marinette sang softly as she held Tikki in her hands and kissed her on the head.

Inside the light speckle was Adrien. He smiled at her singing and continued to hover and listen. He'd taken a liking to how the girl was treating her kwami with so much love and affection.

This actually wasn't the first time he'd been to this balcony. It also wasn't the first time he'd seen Marinette either. In fact, he'd come by so many times just to see her that he'd lost count. There was just something so attractive about this human girl that he couldn't put his finger on it.

_"Believe in my dreams and someday, my rainbow will come smiling through. No matter how my heart is grieving, if I work and keep believing. The dream that I wish will come true." _Marinette sang.

Marinette sighed and stopped. The boy, wanting to hear more, hovered near her ear and said, "Please keep going! You've got an amazing voice!"

"Huh?" Marinette said, whipping her head around.

"What's the matter, Marinette?" Tikki asked.

"I thought I heard someone." Marinette said.

The boy flew around to Marinette's other ear and said, "Don't stop singing! I wanna hear more!"

"Ah! There it is again!" Marinette squeaked as she stepped away.

Tikki saw the boy fluttering around. Being only the size of the palm of Marinette's hand herself, Tikki spotted the smallest of things much easier compared to her owner.

"That's it! Chloé's torment is getting to me! That's gotta be why I'm beginning to hear voices in my head!" Marinette whined.

"No, I heard it, too," Tikki said. "And there's _definitely _someone here. You might not be able to see him, but _I _can."

"Okay, where's this person hiding?!" Marinette said, clearly spooked.

"Oh, I'm not hiding," The boy said into Marinette's ear once more before flying back a bit. "I'm right here."

In a flutter of sparkles, the boy grew to about her size and he landed on his feet, his wings out in the open.

Marinette screamed and backed away, shocked that a boy her age was standing right in front of her. She immediately ran back inside and slammed the door shut. Tikki followed her owner and looked at the boy through the glass door.

"Wait, please!" He said earnestly. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you!"

Marinette scoffed, rolled her eyes, and stated, "Says the boy who _appears out of thin air_ with a_ sword!_"

His wings drooped a bit. _Just_ when he thought that he'd be able to make a move and _talk_ to this cute girl, he'd spooked her. And she'd made it _pretty _clear that his sword wasn't helping. He took the sword off and let it fall on the ground with a clatter.

"Sword's gone," He said. "So, will you come out?"

Marinette looked to Tikki, who gave a nod in approval.

"Okay, but no funny business." Marinette said as she opened the door and walked back out on the balcony. She was scanning him with her eyes and she was looking at him as if she'd never seen a boy before.

"Is... Something wrong?" He asked.

"I..." Marinette began before rubbing her eyes and shaking her head. "Okay... Kwamis I understand; super villains I get... But... What or _who_ _are_ you? What kind of human has _wings?_"

Adrien glanced to his wings, then realized _that's_ what freaked her out.

"He's a fairy, Marinette," Tikki explained. "You know, like Tinker Bell."

"Oh." Marinette said, understanding and sighing in relief.

"So... Marinette, right? That's a cute name." He said, blushing and rubbing the back of his head, a goofy smile still on his face.

"Thanks," Marinette said, blushing. "It's Catalan. It means "ladybug." So... Do _you _have a name I can call you?"

"Adrien." He said.

"It's nice to meet you, Adrien." Marinette said, shuffling her feet.

"Well... I guess we got off on the wrong foot," He said. "I... I didn't mean to startle you, honest."

There was a knock on the door to the bedroom and the butler said, "Mademoiselle? Is everything okay? I heard a scream."

"Oh, um..." Marinette began as she ran back inside and gestured for Adrien to hide. Getting the hint, Adrien shrank again and hid in the flowers on the balcony.

Marinette opened the door to let Jean-Yves in before telling him, "It's nothing, Jean-Yves. I... I was just watching a video and there was a jump-scare that came out of nowhere and it really surprised me. Guess I was too loud. Sorry about that."

"Alright then. Please inform me if you need something." Jean-Yves said before leaving the room.

Marinette sighed in relief, shut the door and locked it before running back outside. She said, "It's safe."

Adrien flew back out of the flowers and grew again before saying, "Thanks."

"No problem. I'm used to keeping secrets." Marinette said as Tikki flew in between them.

"Yeah, same here." Adrien said, glancing at the ring.

"I... Ever since I learned about the Miraculous, I knew magic was real... I guess I just thought that it _only_ existed in the Miraculous." Marinette said, rubbing her arm in embarrassment.

"Looks like you were proven wrong tonight," Adrien said with a chuckle. "It's not every day you meet a fairy."

"But it's not every day you meet a kwami, don magic earrings, and become a super heroine either." Marinette giggled.

"Guess not." Adrien laughed back.

"So... I guess there're things about fairies that I either don't know or trivia that turns out to be completely wrong," Marinette said, stepping forward. "Like, say... Their size. I'd always thought they were the same size as Thumbelina."

"Oh yeah, I've heard _that_ story tons of times," Adrien said. "Fairies are only that small when we need to be. Otherwise we're the same size as people."

"So I could've been talking and having fun with fairies and not even known!" Marinette laughed.

"Yep," Adrien laughed. "So... Anymore you wanna know?"

"Well, do they have a court or something? A prince maybe?" Marinette asked jokingly.

"Yes to both questions." Adrien said, a flirtatious look on his face.

"Well, I'm sure he's a busy guy," Marinette said, her eyes still on Adrien's. "I know I'm pretty busy, being Ladybug and all my other responsibilities."

"You're not wrong," Adrien said with a shrug. "Royal duties keep him occupied. He's gotta sneak out just to have some fun."

"Sounds sad," Marinette said. "I guess being royalty isn't all glitz, parties and romance like the stories tell."

"Definitely not," Adrien said, getting closer to Marinette. "But... I've been told he's handsome."

"So?" Marinette asked with a shrug. "The saying goes, "Beauty's only skin deep." Chloé's a perfect example of _that_."

"Well, I can tell that _your_ beauty goes _much_ deeper. In fact, I think it starts from the inside out." Adrien said, still getting closer.

"Flatterer," Marinette giggled, unaware that Adrien's face was mere inches from hers. "I'll bet the prince gets lonely all the time..."

"I've heard he does," Adrien said, secretly speaking for himself. "I... I'm sure you'd like to meet him. He'd probably appreciate the concern."

"Really? Well... Thank you." Marinette said, looking up at him under her lashes and blushing. He was clearly looking down at her, a smile on his face and his eyes directly on her lips.

Tikki's eyes were wide with delight at this. Marinette wasn't shying away from this boy, who clearly had an interest in her.

Adrien looked to his wings and back to Marinette before asking, "You... Wouldn't want to go out for a flight, would you?"

"Flight?" Marinette asked.

"Yeah," Adrien said. "I can fly around and carry you and you can see things from my perspective."

"Well, I technically "fly" as Ladybug, zipping around on my yo-yo all the time," Marinette said with a giggle. "But... That sounds like a lot of fun."

"Great! Come on!" Adrien said as he took Marinette's hand and went to the railing. Tikki hid in the clutch as always.

Then she realized something.

"Hold it!" Marinette said.

"What?" Adrien asked.

"Well... I actually don't think this is a good idea," Marinette began. "The citizens are used to seeing Ladybug and Cat Noir running or zipping around the skyline, along with any of Hawk Moth's flying super villains. But... I don't think they're going to have the best reaction to seeing a fairy in the flesh. Superheroes and super villains I _know_ they'll understand, but fairies..."

"Hmm, you're right," Adrien said before smiling. "But whoever said that I'd be _this_ size?"

"Wait, you're going to shrink? But what about me?" Marinette asked.

Adrien held her hand and said, "Trust me."

Marinette nodded. They started glowing in gold and sparkles before immediately shrinking down to the size of someone's thumb. Marinette screamed and clung to Adrien, who was flapping his wings and a chuckle rumbled from his chest.

"Don't worry. You'll be fine. Come on!" Adrien said as he held Marinette's hand and started flying away, with him leaving behind a trail of pixie dust.

"Wow..." Marinette said as she saw how the city looked from this new standpoint. It was humongous.

She was used to looking down from the rooftops, not looking up while being the size of someone's digit. Flowers seemed to be the size of buildings while she could ride a ladybug like it was a horse. Animals like dogs and cats were gigantic, like Gigantitan or some of the other larger akumas she'd faced in the past, like Glaciator or Gamer, or even Animan when he shapeshifted into a T-Rex.

"This is incredible! The one time I wish my transformation included wings!" Marinette said.

"Hey, maybe you'll sprout your own someday!" Adrien chuckled as he kept flying at high speed.

_"Let me be your wings. Let me be your only love! Let me take you far beyond the stars!" _Adrien sang as he flew to the Seine and brought Marinette under the bridge. With Adrien hanging on tight, Marinette ran her finger across the surface of the water, and saw the stars sparkling in the rippling water.

_"Let me be your wings. Let me lift you high above!" _Adrien crooned while bringing Marinette up to a cherry tree in full bloom. The pair started to waltz on one of the flower's petals. Adrien kept his eyes on Marinette's as they continued dancing._ "Everything we're dreaming of will soon be ours!" _

Adrien jumped off and began flying again, with Marinette hanging on tightly.

_"Anything that you desire. Anything at all..."_ Adrien sang while he and Marinette landed on the back of a migrating mute swan, who was just landing from flight.

They were once again dancing, with Adrien smiling at Marinette and holding her close to him. Marinette was looking into his eyes, detecting nothing but sincerity and passion.

_"Every day I'll take you higher and I'll never let you fall!" _Adrien crooned while holding onto Marinette's waist and flying up to the sky again.

_"Let me be your wings..." _Adrien sang as he went to the top of a street lamp and he did a spin with Marinette, including an underarm turn. _"Leave behind the world you know for another world of wondrous things!"_

As if doing ballet in mid-air, Adrien flew Marinette around the bulb of the light and did an impromptu pa de deux with her.

_"We'll see the universe and dance on Saturn's rings! Fly with me and I will be your wings!" _Adrien sang while flying through a nearby flowerbox on a windowsill.

A few insects saw them flying by, and one of them asked, "Wow! She's going to marry the prince, isn't she?"

"Who knows?" Another insect said.

_"Anything that you desire! Anything at all..." _Adrien sang while holding Marinette's hands.

_"Anything at all..." _Marinette sang, not looking away from Adrien's eyes. He smiled at the sound of her singing.

_"Every day I'll take you higher and I'll never let you fall!" _Adrien sang, his eyes closed while accidentally letting go of Marinette. Noticing his mistake, he dove down after her.

_"You will be my wings (let me be your wings)..." _Marinette sang, not scared of falling at all. She trusted Adrien, who caught her and started carrying her like his bride. She started tenderly stroking his blonde hair, and he'd showed no discomfort about it.

_"You will be my only love..." _Marinette sang softly, still looking him in the eyes.

_"Get ready for another world of wondrous things!" _Adrien crooned.

_"Wondrous things are sure to happen..." _Marinette sang, smiling and blushing while snuggling closer to Adrien.

_"We'll see the universe and dance on Saturn's rings!" _The pair sang while Adrien landed on a rose in full bloom.

_"Heaven isn't too far!" _Adrien sang, holding Marinette's hand.

_"Heaven is where you are." _Marinette sang in reply while bopping Adrien on the nose with her finger. He chuckled.

_"Stay with me and let me be your (you will be my) wings~!" _The pair crooned while Adrien shot up flying again, holding Marinette by the waist and raising her up while flying. The two of them held the note.

Marinette never thought she'd _literally_ fly with joy at finding someone. It just never occurred to her how it'd be possible without her Miraculous. Marinette looked at Adrien, and he returned her gaze.

Later on, Adrien brought Marinette back to her balcony, still holding her in a bridal carry. Once he crossed the railing, he and Marinette grew back to normal size. He gently put her down.

"That... That was one of the best times I've ever had," Marinette said. "I don't think I remember the last time I've had so much fun."

"I'm glad," Adrien said with a blush on his face. "I don't think _I_ remember the last time I've had fun either. Not since my mother..."

Marinette looked at Adrien, worried about the sad look on his face.

"Oh, um, never mind," Adrien said, shaking his head. "I... I don't think I've ever felt this way about anyone before..."

Adrien started to lean in closer to Marinette to kiss her... But then his phone started going off. He looked at the number and rolled his eyes. "Damn it..."

Marinette asked, "Shouldn't you get that?"

"I would, Marinette, but..." Adrien began, but the phone continued ringing incessantly. "Ugh, fine..."

He swiped on the screen and said, "Yes, father?"

_"Adrien, where are you? You're not answering the door to your room. It's nearly time for dinner." _A cold man's voice said over the line.

"I'm... Out..." Adrien weakly said.

_"Out? As in out of the mansion?" _He asked.

"Y-Yes, father. I... I'm flying back as we speak!" Adrien began.

_"Hurry up and get back home. I won't have you getting squashed like a roach out there." _Adrien's father said.

"Yes, father..." Adrien moaned before hanging up.

"Who was that, Adrien?" Marinette began.

"Just the king of the fairies. My father." Adrien said with a roll of his eyes.

"Your father..." Marinette began, but then she blanched at the connection she made.

"Yes," Adrien began, but he turned around and held Marinette's hands. "C... Can I come back tomorrow night?"

"Wait, your father's the king, so that means...!" Marinette shouted.

"Yes, yes, I'm the prince of the fairies," Adrien said. "But please... Can I come back and see you tomorrow night?"

"Tomorrow night?" Marinette asked.

"Yes! I... I'd like to see you again." Adrien said, blushing.

"Oh, I would too..." Marinette said. "I... I'll be counting the minutes."

"Great!" Adrien said. He planted a kiss on Marinette's cheek before backing away. "I'll see you tomorrow night."

He shrunk and started flying back to his home.

"Wow..." Marinette began, sighing. "I don't believe this... Not only do I meet a real-life fairy... But he's a prince."

"Wild night, huh?" Tikki said.

Marinette sighed wistfully before going back into her room. Dinner was about to be served in the hotel restaurant, too.

* * *

**And that's the end of this chapter! Now to answer a question that I'm sure a lot of you are thinking: did Master Fu _know_ that he gave the Cat Miraculous to a fairy? Answer: _hell no! _Sheer happenstance, I promise.**

**Coming up, Marinette continues her nightly meetings with Adrien, slowly falling in love with him and he with her. But what she doesn't know is that she's also spending time with Cat Noir, too. As they grow closer, Marinette's ability to hide her secret romance with him gets a little more challenging when a certain observant and trustworthy vixen starts catching on to Marinette's change in mood.**

**Now, let's see about a review goal: let's start at about 6+ and go from there, okay?**


	2. Budding Romance

**Okay, thanks for the reviews, you guys! We were one short, but that doesn't matter. Let's set another review goal. Can we shoot for about 10+ this time? **

**Now Marinette's meeting with Adrien has really perked up her spirits and now she's feeling more peppy and cheerful about her life and how no matter how things turn, she'll get through it and she'll have Adrien in her life, all the while excited for her next meeting with him.**

**And you know how I mentioned that "an observant and trustworthy vixen" would get in on the secret? I hope you remember the parts "trustworthy" and "observant." That's right, Alya's gonna learn about this whole thing! Minus the details about being a fairy.**

**Song(s) featured (again, in pieces, whole, with or without altered lyrics):**

**Let Me Be Your Wings Reprise - Thumbelina Soundtrack  
****Get Back Up Again - Anna Kendrick (Trolls soundtrack)****  
**

* * *

The next day at school, Marinette was humming and skipping around the halls as she made her way to the lockers. She had a spring in her step, did a few spins, continued singing happily, paying no one else much attention.

Alya and the others were there getting their things, but they couldn't help but notice that Marinette was in an exceptionally good mood.

Marinette rhythmically opened her locker door, got her books for the day, then shut it. She said to her friends, "Morning, girls."

"Morning, Marinette..." Juleka murmured.

Marinette continued humming and twirling around as she left the locker room.

"She's certainly perky this morning," Alix said, crossing her arms. "Maybe Marinette finally told Mrs. Bourgeois what Chloé was up to?"

Alya replied, "And you think Mrs. Bourgeois actually got off her high horse and made Chloé deal?"

"I don't see what else it could be." Myléne said.

The others weren't sure what else could've put Marinette in a good mood. Alya had a hunch, though...

"I think I know what's going on with Marinette," Alya said while smiling. "Our girl's got it bad."

"Wait, you think she's in love?" Rose asked joyfully.

"Talk about perfect timing. We tell her to get a boyfriend, she falls in love." Myléne said perkily, Rose nodding enthusiastically.

"Oh, I am _so_ getting the deets out of her later!" Alya said with a big smile.

Marinette sat in the classroom, daydreaming and humming along to the tune from when they first met. Since she was alone, Tikki was out of hiding and sitting on the desk.

_"He will be my wings... He will be my only love..."_ Marinette quietly sang. _"He will take me far beyond the stars..."_

"You must _really_ like Adrien, don't you?" Tikki said.

Marinette gave a hum and nod before continuing her singing, _"He will be my wings... He will lift me high above. Everything we're dreaming of will soon be ours... Anything that we desire, anything at all... Every day he'll take me higher, and-" _

Tikki heard someone coming, then zipped back in the bag.

Realizing it was time for Marinette to stop, she immediately shut her mouth just as the door opened. Some of the other students came filing in, including Chloé, who didn't hesitate to shoot a suspicious and angry glare in Marinette's direction. She was clearly still sore about getting chewed out by Audrey, and didn't bother hiding it either.

Alya slammed her butt down in her seat next to Marinette, then grabbed her shoulders. She said, "Girl, spill!"

"Spill what?" Marinette asked, her eyes darting around. Alya didn't find out she's Ladybug, did she?!

"Marinette. You're blushing, humming, sighing... _Glowing! _That can only mean one thing: _you met a-_" Alya began, but Marinette slammed her hand on Alya's mouth.

_"SHH!" _Marinette hissed, a finger to her lips. "Keep it down, Alya! I'll tell you about it later!"

"Fine, but you owe me details, girl," Alya said as the teacher came in. "You're going to tell me _everything _when there's time, okay?"

Marinette nodded. Anything to get Alya to chill out and for Chloé to get off her back.

When break came along, Alya dragged Marinette out to the schoolyard and found a private area for the two of them to talk.

"So, who's the guy?!" Alya asked, albeit a bit loudly.

"Alya, I _really_ can't have you talking about this too loudly! The fewer who know about this, the better!" Marinette said, trying to make sure Alya kept her mouth shut.

"What? Why?" Alya asked, confused about her BFF's need to stay quiet. "The girls have the right to know about this!"

"Like I said, the fewer in the know, the better. Besides, the last thing I need is this getting out to _you-know-who!_" Marinette said.

"Oh, right..." Alya said, realizing that Marinette had a point. "Bad idea for Chloé to find out."

Marinette nodded furiously. She _wanted_ to trust Alya with this, but she knew that just like her secret identity, she had to respect Adrien's privacy and not say anything about fairies.

"Well..." Marinette said, not sure how to start. "We met last night..."

_"OOH! _At the hotel?!" Alya asked.

Since it wasn't _technically_ a lie, Marinette rolled with it and said, "Oh yeah... We met at the hotel."

"So, who made the first move?!" Alya asked, eagerly awaiting more information.

"He did," Marinette said, blushing while trying to avoid slipping up about fairies. "He... Caught me singing and wanted an encore."

"You're certainly a good singer!" Alya said, nudging her BFF. "Sounds like he fell in love with your singing voice like Eric and Ariel in "The Little Mermaid," huh? Or Cornelius in "Thumbelina.""

"You sound like Rose," Marinette said, blushing a bit. "But I guess that's how it went."

"What do you mean "you guess," Marinette?!" Alya asked. "You can't give me that! So, what happened?!"

"We... We talked, and introduced ourselves," Marinette said, trying to be as vague as possible about Adrien being a fairy. "After we got that out of the way, he snuck me out of the hotel and we hung out."

"Really?! Come on girl, I _need_ more details! So, what did he look like?! Hair color? Eyes?! Skin tone?! COME ON, tell me!" Alya asked.

"He... He's blonde... Green eyes like the peridots that Audrey would use in some of her work, and he has a healthy amount of tan in his skin tone." Marinette said.

"Sounds like he's _gorgeous! _So, did you get a name?!" Alya asked.

"A... Adrien. His name's Adrien," Marinette said, blushing. "He's definitely model material."

"Come on, girl," Alya said. "So, what happened?! Did he kiss you?!"

Marinette blushed and said, "Well... Almost... His phone interrupted."

"Damn!" Alya said, snapping her fingers.

"We only just met last night. Not sure where this is going." Marinette said.

"Yeah, that's a good point. Don't wanna rush into this. Not a fairytale after all," Alya said. "But girl, _please_ tell me Chloé didn't catch you together!"

"She didn't." Marinette said.

"That's a relief," Alya said. "So, are you gonna see him again?"

"Yeah. Tonight," Marinette said. "I can't wait."

"Girl, you gotta tell me everything tomorrow!" Alya said.

Marinette said, "I will."

She wasn't gonna say _everything_. Superheroes were one thing, fairies were another.

* * *

The following night came and went. She had a great time with Adrien again, and they didn't get caught. Marinette _did_ tell Adrien that she told her best friend about him, minus the details about being a fairy. Adrien was grateful for Marinette's discretion. Once again, Adrien took her out into nature to enjoy themselves.

Their fun really helped Marinette rest well that night. She dreamed about spending more time with Adrien, away from prying eyes and free from everything that tied them down.

Marinette's alarm clock blared and she woke up in her bedroom with a smile on her face and a yawn. She sat up, then swung her legs out of bed before standing up. She stretched her arms and smiled brightly.

"Morning, Tikki!" Marinette said as she went to change out of her pajamas.

"Morning, Marinette!" Tikki said as she flew over to her owner. "It's a beautiful Saturday morning, isn't it?"

"Yeah!" Marinette said as she fully changed and went out to her balcony.

After seeing the city and the nature around it from a fairy's perspective, Marinette saw her home in a whole new light and gained a new appreciation for nature and its bounties. She looked up at the sky, which hadn't a cloud and the sun was out. No wonder several people got akumatized into nature-themed super villains: they felt like people weren't seeing things from that sort of viewpoint.

_"Looking up at a sunny sky, so shiny and blue, and there's a butterfly!" _Marinette sang as a pink butterfly flew by and landed on her nose before flying away. _"Well isn't that a super fantastic sign? It's gonna be a fantastic day!"_

Marinette finished up her breakfast with vigor and skipped out of the hotel with a peppy smile and Tikki in her clutch. This only garnered confused looks from the Bourgeoises, but Audrey merely gave a shrug.

Marinette started skipping along to her favorite fabric store to do some shopping and get more materials for future projects. Just like Chloé, Marinette was given free reign for spending, but Marinette was always more frugal about her expenses, especially since she still had a "middle-class" financial mindset.

_"Such marvelousness it's gonna bring. Got a pocket full of songs that I'm gonna sing! And I'm ready to take on anything! Hooray!" _Marinette sang.

But there was a loud explosion and a bellow of smoke coming from near the Eiffel Tower. And Marinette knew that only meant one thing: akuma attack. Marinette, a determined smile on her face.

She ran into an alley to hide and she let Tikki out of her clutch.

_"Some super fun surprise around each corner!" _Marinette sang before calling to transform.

She then used her yo-yo to hook onto one of the buildings and she zipped out from hiding, almost flying to go and fight off the akuma, while singing, _"Just riding on a rainbow! I'm gonna be okay!"_

She landed on a roof and started running across them to find the akuma and put a stop to it.

_"Hey! I'm not giving up today! There's nothing getting in my way!" _Ladybug sang as she did her usual flips and spins on the rooftops while swinging around on her yo-yo.

Once she got to the scene of the attack, she immediately started fighting, but this particular villain was a little stronger than most. In fact, as soon as Ladybug tried to land a hit on the creature with her leg, her ankle was snagged and she was thrown into a nearby wall.

_"And if you knock knock me over, I will get back up again!" _Ladybug said as she immediately leaped back into the battle.

Cat Noir arrived on the scene and also started to fight, using his stick to fight off the villain, but he was blocked and flipped over onto his back.

_"Oh! If something goes a little wrong, well you can go ahead and bring it on! Cause if you knock knock me over, I will get back up again!" _Ladybug sang as she started running at the villain, spinning her yo-yo to block any attacks.

But this villain snagged the string of the yo-yo and yanked it. Ladybug was thrown across the city, with Cat Noir shouting her name in fear.

Ladybug ricochetted around a few buildings before landing on the ground. She stood up and shook her head before launching her yo-yo again to return to the fight. She went back to running on the rooftops, albeit not without labored breathing.

_"I'm running along, I've got confidence. I'm cooler than a pack of peppermints," _Ladybug sang as she started swinging around the city to get back to work. _"And I haven't been this excited since... I can't remember when!"_

She remembered when she first got her start as Ladybug, and she realized that if it hadn't been for that, she probably wouldn't have grown up so much.

_"I'm off on this remarkable adventure! Just riding on a rainbow!" _Ladybug sang as she swung through a few buildings, while passing by classmate Marc Anciel, who was writing in a journal. He waved to her.

_"What if it's all a big mistake? What if it's more than I can take?" _Ladybug sang to herself in askance in a moment of self-doubt, but then she slammed into a wall. She peeled herself off and kept swinging to the rescue.

_"No! I can't think that way 'cause I know that I'm really really really gonna be okay!" _Ladybug sang as she made it back to the battle, much to the chagrin of the akuma, but the delight of Cat Noir.

_"Hey! I'm not giving up today! There's nothing getting in my way!" _Ladybug sang, but the akuma knocked her off her feet for a while. _"And if you knock knock me over, I will get back up again!"_

Ladybug leaped back onto her feet and kept on fighting. She knew the timing was perfect so she summoned her lucky charm, which turned out to be a fruit basket.

_"Oh! If something goes a little wrong, well you can go ahead and bring it on! Cause if you knock knock me over, I will get back up again!" _Ladybug sang while looking around to try and find something she could use with her lucky charm to defeat the villain.

After several minutes of fighting off the villain, they soon caught the akuma. An exhausted Ladybug caught the akuma, and let it go before using her "Miraculous Ladybug" to fix everything.

_"And if you knock knock me over, you knock knock me over, I... Will... get back up again!" _Ladybug sang, thoroughly exhausted and she collapsed on Cat Noir, who was looking at his partner in concern and minor confusion over her well-being.

"You okay?" Cat Noir asked.

"I'm okay..." Ladybug wheezed before slumping down on the rooftop.

After that battle wrapped itself up, Ladybug ducked down into an alley near the shopping district and hid out of sight.

"Spots off." Ladybug said before changing back into Marinette. She ran out of the alleyway and she saw her favorite fabric store. She saw green fabric in the window and immediately smiled and started getting an idea before walking to the door.

"What's your plan, Marinette?" Tikki asked.

"I thought I'd make something for Adrien!" Marinette said.

"Great idea! He'll love it!" Tikki said before hiding back in the bag.

Marinette opened the door, letting the bell ring and the woman at the counter gave her a smile.

"Hi, Marinette!" The shopkeeper said, always happy to see her.

"Hi again!" Marinette said as she started perusing the shelves for the right fabric. She didn't know Adrien's size, but she wanted to at least get a head start, so in case she needed to make adjustments, she'd at least have an idea of what she'd need to change.

She looked at the all the fabrics that were either cotton, vegan, or polyester/synthetic furs and wools. Basically anything that wasn't _real _silk, wool or any other animal-derived fabrics. She wasn't sure how Adrien felt about animals being used for clothing, so she decided to be sensitive to that.

She was very careful about the labels and often looked up terms she didn't understand. Once she got to the counter to check out, the woman noticed the choices she made.

"This isn't your usual fare, Marinette," The cashier said. "Trying to switch it up?"

"You might say that." Marinette said with a smile and a blush.

* * *

Later that evening, Marinette was eating dinner with the rest of the Bourgeois family. They were eating Steak au Poivre with shrimp in the sauce and a hefty salad filled with greens and a fancy truffle vinaigrette.

"Well, Marinette, you certainly bounded out of here in a good mood this morning. And you came back with _quite_ a load from the fabric store," Audrey said. "Were you struck with inspiration?"

"Um, yes," Marinette said, trying her best not to let anything on. "I was thinking, "why not try using vegan or synthetic fabrics?" I mean..."

"Vegan fabrics?" Audrey said, her voice dropping an octave. "What brought _that_ on?"

"I... Uh..." Marinette began, not sure how to come up with anything to say that _wasn't_, "Hey, I met the prince of the fairies the other night and thanks to him, I got to see nature in a whole new viewpoint, so I thought I'd make something for this guy because I think I _really _like him."

"I... It just came to me at random! I noticed some of the terms on the labels in the store. I got curious, looked them up and realized what they meant. Since I happen to _love_ animals, I thought, why not try and make a line of clothes using these types of fabrics for other animal-lovers? Besides, PETA won't get on my case about it in the future if I have those types of clothes in my arsenal." Marinette said, telling the truth about looking up some of the labeling terms.

"Hah! You're _always_ thinking of some stupid reason to come up with trashy clothes. Especially since you're not bothering to use legitimate cashmere or mulberry silk!" Chloé spat.

"Chloé! You're not to talk about your sister like that! She's an _exceptional designer_ and she's got the talent and potential to upstage Gabriel Agreste!" Audrey sternly said. "Marinette, you're a visionary and your thought process is well-founded. Not to mention good thinking for business in the future."

Marinette smiled and said, "Thank you, Mrs. Bourgeois."

They continued eating dinner, Chloé glaring at Marinette while the pigtailed designer herself was thinking about her sketch and design for Adrien's present.

Once they finished their dessert, Marinette dashed up to her bedroom and locked the door. She ran for her desk, took out a sketchbook and started drawing out some concepts, including several accessories to go with the ensemble.

"You must be really excited to get this done for him!" Tikki said.

"I sure am! I'm thinking this black vegan leather for a jacket with some green stitching, and this dark green nylon for pants," Marinette said as she continued sketching her designs. "And speaking of green, maybe using the same green thread in the jacket for stitching in the pants?"

"That sounds like a great idea!" Tikki agreed.

"Yeah! Like embroidered leaves in the pants... Oh, what about a hat?" Marinette asked as she kept sketching pants, shirts, hats, and so much more, and all of these utilized the vegan or polyester fabrics she found.

Tikki just giggled as her owner kept sketching and drawing out designs.

Back with Adrien, he was in his room and waiting for dusk, basically counting the minutes until he could see Marinette again. Sure, he _technically_ saw her earlier that day during the akuma attack, but that wasn't enough for him. He wanted more. He felt like Eros cast a spell on him and now he wanted more of Marinette as... Well, _Marinette_.

As the sun was about to go down over the horizon, Adrien smiled and stood up. He looked back to his bedroom door.

He was paranoid about his father coming in and catching him sneaking out. Like always, he kept the door locked and the lights out. Hiding the fact that he was Cat Noir was one thing (and honestly it was easy), but hiding his nightly escapades as a fairy was another. It was harder because he always had his phone on him, too.

"Let's go Adrien," Plagg said. "Have some fun out there!"

"Thanks, Plagg," Adrien said as he opened the window before opening up his shirt for Plagg to hide in. Plagg obliged to his owner's intended order. "I'll get you some nicer cheese later."

Adrien shrunk down, then flew out of the window to his room to go see Marinette. He was too excited, and was looking forward to seeing her again.

Marinette was finished sketching out her creation for Adrien. She was comparing the fabrics she got, looking at the different blacks and greens, trying to get the right color combination for the design.

"Hm... This apple green plaid looks okay with the black, but it just looks stereotypical or cliché to me... On the other hand, the black looks a lot better paired with this dark spring green, too... Hey Tikki, what do you think?"

Tikki was on the lookout for Adrien. Marinette wanted her design for him to be a surprise, so she asked Tikki to keep an eye out for him. At her owner's request, Tikki flew over to her and looked at the two fabric choices Marinette had in mind.

"Hm... Honestly, either one works to me. But the dark spring green seems to do a better job." Tikki said.

"That's good," Marinette said. "I was thinking about the lime green, but that looked like I was trying to put on a light show with this outfit."

"Yeah," Tikki said as she went back to the window to look for Adrien. "When do you plan to get it done?"

"As soon as I find _any_ sort of time between akumatizations, school, homework... I want this to be a surprise for him!" Marinette said.

Tikki saw a light trail heading for the balcony and said, "In that case, you'd better hide your supplies. He's here!"

Marinette squeaked a bit before scrambling to get all of her materials hidden. She tossed them into a trunk, locked it, and then snatched up her sketchbook.

She ran out to the balcony just as Adrien went back to normal side and landed. Tikki made herself scarce by hiding in the clutch and not contributing to the conversation.

"Good evening, Marinette," Adrien said as he walked up to Marinette and gave her shoulder a hug. She giggled and blushed at the contact. "How was your day today?"

"Akuma attack aside, I had a really good day," Marinette said. "I got a huge amount of inspiration today for some designs."

"Designs?" Adrien asked, tilting his head a bit.

"Oh, I wanna be a fashion designer." Marinette said.

"Really?" Adrien asked. "My dad works in fashion when he's not busy as the king of the fairies."

"Wow!" Marinette said, her eyes wide with intrigue.

"I'd like to see some of your designs if that's okay." Adrien said, before pointing to Marinette's sketchbook.

Marinette blanched, knowing her surprise design for Adrien was in the final pages, and the final design wasn't done yet.

So she handed him the book and said, "Okay, let's start from the beginning. There are some newer ones that I'm not quite finished on yet, and I don't feel right showing you works-in-progress."

"Alright then." Adrien said as he took the book, but not without brushing his fingers up against hers. They both blushed and shyly giggled before Adrien took the book in his hands.

He started flipping through the pages, eyes fully engrossed in the work. His smile was perfect as he kept looking over each sketch, every pop of color, every swipe and sweep of the pencil, every place where the eraser did its job, and every signature Marinette put on her works.

"These are some sweet designs, Marinette," Adrien said. He was looking at a dress modeled after a ladybug. He chuckled at the irony of it. "You really have talent and creativity."

Marinette blushed again and she took the book back, happy Adrien didn't see the surprise she had in store for him. She said, "Thank you."

"You're so welcome," Adrien said before sighing in content. "I don't really know what I want to do with my life."

"You mean outside of being the king of the fairies someday?" Marinette asked.

"Yes," Adrien said. "Father keeps me stuck in the house almost all the time. And like I said last night, I always have to sneak out to have some fun. And since father's so occupied with his work, it's easy for me to do that under his nose."

"Sounds like your father's distant at best." Marinette said.

"Yes," Adrien said with a sad nod. "Since I can't get out of the house without sneaking around, that means I haven't found anything that strikes me as something I'd wanna make a career out of."

"That's pretty sad. Most of my friends have found something they all love," Marinette said. "My best friend Alya, for example. She plans on becoming a journalist someday. The Ladyblog's really gonna help her with that."

"Anyone else?" Adrien said. "I'd like to hear more about your friends."

Marinette eagerly started to talk about all of her friends in her class. She spoke about Juleka and Rose and their relationship with each other, Myléne's ambitions about going into politics (and Marinette's personal hope that she'll do a better job than her adoptive father), Alix's passion for sports, something she had in common with fellow classmate Kim, and the life goals of a few of the boys in her class.

"Wow, sounds like Max is pretty smart," Adrien said. "Building a robot friend that's practically sentient? Impressive."

"Yeah. He and I go toe-to-toe playing UMS all the time," Marinette said. "We either tie or I win."

Adrien chuckled at this.

"Then there's Nathaniel," Marinette said. "He's a great artist. His drawings are pro-level. I've caught some of his work. They've won a few art competitions at school."

"Really?" Adrien asked.

"Yeah," Marinette said. "But the poor guy seems to get pretty timid around me for some reason. Goes about as red as his hair and gives me shy smiles."

Adrien scowled just the slightest bit at that, and he said, "Sounds like I've got competition."

"Competition?" Marinette asked.

"I get the feeling this Nathaniel character likes you." Adrien scoffed.

"You think?" Marinette asked.

"Totally," Adrien said before hugging her by the shoulder. "Guess this means I have to redouble my efforts."

"What?" Marinette asked.

Adrien chuckled and didn't answer before sighing happily.

"So... what about your family?" Adrien asked. "I'm sure it's better than mine."

"Before or after I was taken in by the Bourgeoises?" Marinette asked.

"Oh..." Adrien said realizing she had two families. "Beforehand."

Marinette gave a nod and said, "They were the owners of the Tom & Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie... They were the best parents ever. Supporting my dreams, taking time to help me if I needed it, punishing me if I did wrong, or rewarding me for doing good. They never knew that I was Ladybug until right before they passed, but that's probably for the best."

"So... What happened?" He asked.

"Well... If it were an akuma attack killing them, my Miraculous Ladybug would've brought them back to life and everything would've gone on as normal, but... This time it was anything but." Marinette began.

Adrien was silent, just letting Marinette go slowly because it was obviously still hurting her.

"...Well... They..." Marinette began, starting to cry.

"If it hurts too much, don't say anything," Adrien said. "Talk about the here and now."

Marinette, realizing that Adrien was willing to let her take her time, wiped away her tears and said, "...Okay. The Bourgeoises... I wouldn't necessarily call them my family. My grandparents wouldn't've been able to take me in. My grandparents on my mother's side don't live in Paris, my grandmother Gina travels all the time, my grandfather and my father had a falling out before he and my mom got married, and I don't speak a lick of Chinese, so I can't communicate with anyone on my mother's side. So... I was basically stuck. And leaving would've been a bad idea because I would've needed to relinquish Tikki."

"Yeah, not a good idea for Paris's superhero to leave with Hawk Moth still at large. Cat Noir, Rena Rouge and company can't capture akumas." Adrien said.

"Yeah. Audrey Bourgeois saw all of the clothes I made, said I was exceptional and a visionary in fashion, and then she basically took me in with plans to train me and make me a star in the fashion world." Marinette said.

"That's amazing!" Adrien said. "Audrey Bourgeois, one of the harshest critics in the fashion world, sees your talents and plans on making you a big name!"

"Yeah. She's pretty... intense, but she treats me nice enough. Mayor Bourgeois also treats me well enough, too. Chloé, though..." Marinette began.

"A bitch?" Adrien said bluntly.

"Pretty much," Marinette said. "I just told Audrey on her, so I'm sure she'll stop, but she's always trying to make my life hell at school and I have to lock the door to my room to keep my designs safe."

"At least her mom has your back." Adrien said.

"Yeah, but... I'm just not the happiest here," Marinette said. "Alya's constantly telling me to move in with her. But I think I'll wait until I'm eighteen and I have a job so I can leave without any complaints."

"It's good that you're planning to take action," Adrien said. "This isn't an ideal situation for you, but at least you have a mentor."

"If she still bothers with me once I drop the "I'm moving out" bomb when the time comes." Marinette said.

Adrien gave Marinette a hug and he said, "Don't worry, Marinette. If worse comes to worse, I can probably get my father to help you."

"But he doesn't know you go out all the time, right? You'd get into trouble, wouldn't you?" Marinette asked.

"Maybe so," Adrien said. "But I still feel like I need to help."

Marinette smiled and she leaned in to Adrien's embrace. He hugged her back before trying to move in for a kiss on her forehead. But he hesitated, thinking that'd be moving too fast, and slowly backed his face away.

"So... It's a beautiful night tonight," Adrien said. "Wanna go out again?"

"That'd be fun," Marinette said. She went to turn out the lights in her room to divert suspicion. "But I'll keep my phone on me in case an akuma alert goes down."

"Good idea. Those things pop up anytime, anywhere. If an alert happens, I'll put you down, bring you back to size and then off you go." Adrien said.

"Thanks, Adrien." Marinette said as she took Adrien's hand. Using his magic, they shrunk down again before flying off.

Marinette was once again having the time of her life with Adrien. He brought her to do so many activities that only a tiny fairy could do. They played hide-and-seek in the flower bushes in the park.

Marinette was running beneath the branches of a rosebush, being careful to avoid the thorns. She had a few close calls, though.

"What was I thinking, trying to hide in a rose bush?" Marinette asked Tikki.

"I don't know," Tikki said. "But when it comes to the language of flowers, roses are obvious. Red ones especially. They mean love."

Marinette blushed as she giggled at the symbolism. Adrien was flying above the bush and saw Marinette through a hole in the canopy of it. He chuckled at the sight of Marinette.

"Looks like I found a princess hiding in the roses!" Adrien said as he flew through the bush and hugged Marinette from behind. He nuzzled his cheek against hers.

"You found me!" Marinette said with a smile.

Adrien was tempted to give Marinette plenty of kisses on her cheek.

"Too many thorns for us in here," Adrien said, whispering in Marinette's ear. "Let's move our game to less _prickly_ territory."

"Oh, that was horrible!" Marinette said, stifling a laugh as Adrien held her by the waist and flew her out of the bush to go somewhere else to play hide and seek.

A few rounds of the game, and Marinette jokingly declared Adrien was cheating because he could fly. Adrien laughed in response, realizing that Marinette had a point. One round had Adrien hiding up in a bird's nest while Marinette decided to hide in an animal burrow.

Marinette tried to hide in the flowers again, but their sweet scent rubbed off on her, making her a magnet for the honeybees. While she was at first scared of the bees, they turned out to be very friendly, thinking that she was a ladybug for some reason. They even let her ride on their backs as they went to pollinate flowers.

And the ensuing commotion made it easy for Adrien to find her. Recognizing the prince of the fairies, the bees buzzed and let Marinette go back to him. As he flew off to show her more fun, Adrien chuckled and tried his best to hold back laughter.

"What's so funny?" Marinette asked.

"You don't speak animal, so you wouldn't understand," Adrien said. "But... Those bees thought you were my fiancé, and they were curious about your missing wings."

"They thought I was a fairy without wings?!" Marinette asked, but when the first part of that translation dawned on her, she went red in the face. "_Fiancé?!_"

"Moving a little too fast, right?" Adrien asked.

"Yep." Marinette said, her blush dying down.

Adrien flew off to another part of the meadow. He saw a giant sunflower and he landed on top of it. He put Marinette down and still held her hand.

"So, shall we dance?" Adrien asked.

"I'd love to," Marinette said with a smile and blush. "But... no music..."

"Rather than rely on your phone for it, I have an idea." Adrien said before putting two fingers in his mouth and whistling. Crickets came out from hiding and one larger one approached the prince.

"Hi there," Adrien said to the cricket. "Could you and your friends play me and my gir... My _friend_ some music, please?"

The big cricket nodded and then the insects started rubbing their legs and wings together to make string instrument music. It was the perfect music for a slow dance.

Adrien also saw some fireflies nearby and he asked them, "Can we have some soft spotlights for our dance, please?"

The fireflies obliged happily and gave the pair a spotlight. Lights, music, stars in the sky... It was perfect. Marinette smiled in awe of nature's beauty at night. She decided that the next time they did this, she'd bring her sketchbook.

"Shall we?" Adrien asked, holding his hand out to Marinette. She blushed and put her hand in his.

Adrien started to waltz with Marinette. He had his other hand on her waist as the two of them started dancing with joy. Adrien's eyes were focused on Marinette's. Nothing else mattered, because Marinette was the only thing in his eyes. She was laughing and dancing like she was born to take center stage. Her pretty blue eyes were hidden behind her smiling eyes and her joyful giggles.

He wanted to hold her closer. His heart was stolen by her sweetness, but he didn't want it back. He put both his hands on the small of her back and pulled her closer to him. He also rested his chin on her shoulder. Marinette blushed and giggled at this, leaning her head closer.

They did so much more that night. Adrien showed her to some of his favorite hiding spots, showed her how some of the fairies made clothes with the resources they had. Stray flower petals, leaves, etc. Marinette paid close attention to _that_, especially if she wanted to make dresses the next time Adrien shrunk her down to fairy size.

Hours passed, all with nothing but the upmost enjoyment. They danced, flew through the sky, talked about nothing in particular, and it was nothing but joy and happiness between the two of them.

Now the two of them were stargazing while sitting on a tree branch in the park. Marinette was leaning against Adrien's shoulder while he held her close.

"It's a beautiful sky tonight, isn't it?" Adrien asked.

"Yeah," Marinette said with a nod. "I always get to see the night sky like this at night, but not when I'm this size."

"It's certainly an entire change in perspective." Adrien stated.

Marinette gave a nod in agreement and said, "This has been a great night, Adrien. I just wish it didn't have to end so soon."

"Me too," Adrien said as he turned around and gave Marinette a seductive smile. "But... We still have many more nights ahead of us. And maybe even..."

Adrien began to lean in, his lips pursed. Marinette blushed and her mouth hung open just a little bit. Their eyes were about to close and they were about to share their first kiss when...

_*AKUMA ALERT! AKUMA ALERT!* _

Their phones started going off like nuts and Adrien groaned quietly as they plucked their devices out of their pockets.

"Crap, an akuma!" Marinette said, spooked. "And it's near the Eiffel Tower! We're close by!"

"I'll bring you to a hiding spot so you can transform." Adrien said as he stood up and took Marinette's hand.

He took off flying and in a matter of seconds, he brought Marinette to an alley nearby. They flew in, and Adrien brought them back to human size.

"Get back home safely," Marinette said as Tikki came out of hiding. _"Tikki, spots on!"_

After transforming, Ladybug used her yo-yo to get to the Eiffel Tower to fight off the latest akuma.

"Better not idle around. _Plagg, claws out!"_ Adrien said before activating his ring and transforming into Cat Noir.

He was wearing a black suit with a bell on his neck, a baton on his lower back, a mask that covered the top half of his face, cat-like green eyes, unruly blonde hair, and cat ears on his head. He also had a belt that resembled a tail.

He used his baton to get up to the rooftops to catch up to Ladybug. Sure, he still got to spend time with Marinette, but that wasn't important right now. He and Ladybug had an akuma to take down, so that took priority. He'd worry about his time with Marinette later.

* * *

**And that's a wrap! Alya's in the loop (not completely), Marinette and Adrien are growing closer, and the Bourgeoises aren't aware of what's going on with Marinette.**

**And as for why you didn't learn about what happened to Tom and Sabine? Truth is, I couldn't think of anything to explain their death that didn't involve cancer or murder. And we all know that even if they died during an akuma attack, Ladybug's "Miraculous Ladybug" would've brought them back. I'll just leave what happened open to everyone's imagination, okay?**

**Coming up, Marinette and Adrien start growing even closer, and Adrien's thrilled at the present that Marinette made for him. In fact, he even considers breaking the news about his "girlfriend" to his father. Meanwhile, Marinette's happily confiding in Alya about her "boyfriend." Speaking of Alya, will she ever find out that Adrien's a fairy? **

**By the way, the more reviews I get, the better. Let's set another review goal for about 10+, okay?**


	3. Blooming Love

**Hey all! Here's the next chapter of "Be Her Wings!" In this chapter, Adrien seriously considers coming clean to his father about his nightly meetings with Marinette, but gets an unexpected reaction out of him when he does. Meanwhile, Marinette's swooning over her boyfriend while making sure to keep any fairy-related information out of her conversations with Alya.  
**

**Now, let's shoot for another review goal. I've said it before and I'll say it again: the more of a positive response I get, the better. Otherwise, I'm just getting bored with this story. Let's shoot for about 10+ this time ****around since the last review goal wasn't met, please?**

* * *

A few weeks had passed since Adrien and Marinette first met and started dating in secret. In fact, closer to a month. The pair were so in love with each other, never wanting to part at night.

One evening in the Agreste Mansion, Adrien was in the dining room, eating alone as always.

One of his father's workers, his PA, Nathalie Sancoeur, also a fairy, was in the room. She was wearing a black suit, had black hair in a bun with a red streak, had blue eyes framed by glasses, and was looking at her charge.

"Um, Nathalie..." Adrien began, putting his fork down. "Is father available any time this week? It's... Important."

"I'm afraid your father has fallen behind on his work and needs to catch up," Nathalie began. "What could be such a big deal that you need to interrupt him?"

"...Well, as prince of the fairies, I thought father would like to know that I'm considering something very important... Being future king and all." Adrien began, pulling out the royalty card.

Nathalie's eyes widened a bit. She questioned, "What exactly are you talking about?"

"He'll find out when I talk to him," Adrien said. "It's urgent."

"I'll inform him immediately." Nathalie stated as she left the dining room.

"Adrien, you're seriously thinking about telling your father about your sneaking out to meet a human girl?" Plagg asked as he peeked out of hiding.

"Just because she was _born_ human doesn't mean she's condemned to _stay_ human. Besides," Adrien stated. "...If she consents, then there will be benefits for both of us."

Plagg hid again when he heard footsteps.

"Adrien, your father will see you immediately." Nathalie said, her tone professional as always.

Adrien stood up to walk to his father's atelier.

Gabriel Agreste, an older man with ice-cold eyes was standing in front of a computer screen, working on a few designs.

"Father." Adrien stated as he came in to the studio.

"Adrien," Gabriel began as he turned his screen off. "What do you need?"

"...Father, as Crown Prince of the French Fairies, I wanted to discuss something important with you," Adrien started, his tone professional, but he was nervous. "...It's about the future."

"The future?" Gabriel questioned. "Perfect timing. I was thinking of arranging a ball with all of the prominent fairy families to help you find a bride."

"That won't be necessary." Adrien began.

"I beg your pardon?" Gabriel asked, his voice dropping an octave.

"...Well, the truth is..." Adrien continued, forcing himself not to chicken out. "You know how that one time you called me and I was out of the house?"

"Yes?" Gabriel replied. "What about it?"

"It isn't the first time," Adrien confessed. "In fact, it's been going on for a little less than a month. Every night after dinner."

"Cut to the chase, Adrien." Gabriel ordered.

"...Okay. There's this girl..." Adrien spoke, worried about his father's reaction.

"A girl?" Gabriel repeated.

"Yes... A human girl. Her name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng," Adrien said as he took out his phone to show him a picture. "She's the adopted daughter of the Bourgeois family."

"I didn't know they had two daughters." Gabriel stated.

He looked at Adrien's phone to see the picture of Marinette.

"How much does she know?" Gabriel questioned.

"Enough," Adrien confirmed. "The fact that I'm a fairy, and the prince to boot. You being my father."

"You told her everything?" Gabriel asked darkly.

_'Not _everything_, but he doesn't need to know that.' _Adrien thought before saying, "Almost. I told her you about you being a fashion designer... Speaking of which, she wants to be a fashion designer herself. She's shown me a few pieces."

"...I see," Gabriel started. "Considering no scandals about fairies being real have broken out, then that's a sign she's trustworthy."

"Believe me, she knows how to keep a secret." Adrien began.

"Then I expect her to be over for dinner. _Tomorrow_." Gabriel spoke.

Adrien brightened and said, "Yes, father! I'll inform her right away!"

Adrien shrunk down to size and flew out the window.

"Nathalie," Gabriel began once his son was gone. "Look into this Marinette Dupain-Cheng girl. I don't want any of my champions hurting her if she makes Adrien happy."

"Understood, sir." Nathalie said as she left the atelier.

In her room, Marinette was finishing up her present for Adrien. She got the last stitch in the pants before picking it up.

"Perfect!" Marinette said as she held it up before putting it on the mannequin. "All done."

"It looks great, Marinette!" Tikki spoke as her owner started taking pictures with her phone. "He'll love it!"

"Speaking of whom, he's running a bit late tonight..." Marinette began as she put her phone down and looked out the window.

Seeing his light trail, Marinette brightened as Adrien grew to human size, then landed on the balcony.

"Marinette!" He called out.

"Hi, Adrien," Marinette said as she came out to greet him. "You're later than usual. Did something hold you up tonight?"

"Yeah, a little," Adrien said. "So, ready for another night of fun?"

"I was thinking we could stay in for the evening?" Marinette suggested. "I have something for you!"

"Really?" Adrien questioned as he followed Marinette into her room.

Marinette led him towards a mannequin she was working on, which was covered in a white tarp.

"What's this?" Adrien asked.

"Surprise!" Marinette trilled as she took the tarp off to reveal a new outfit for Adrien.

The ensemble was a pair of dark green nylon pants with apple green leaves embroidered into it. The shirt was dark spring green and had a matching pattern. There was a black faux wool jacket over the shirt, too. Finally, the hat was an apple-green fedora with dark spring green leaves to look like one was wearing leaves for clothes, including a large leaf coming out of the band.

"Wow! That's incredible, Marinette. No wonder Audrey Bourgeois took you in," Adrien began. "Can I try it on?"

"Go ahead!" Marinette said, thumb-jerking to a door. "The en-suite bathroom is right there."

"Okay!" Adrien said as he snatched up the clothes and ran into the bathroom.

"I wasn't sure about your size!" Marinette said from outside the door.

"Don't worry, I can magically refit it if I need to." Adrien replied from inside.

He stepped out after a few minutes, fully dressed in his new outfit. He looked at himself, drinking in the details of his ensemble.

"The full-length mirror is over there," Marinette said as she brought him over to her personal mirror. "Take a look."

Adrien looked at himself in the mirror, looking himself over. He drunk in his new piece of his wardrobe, before saying, "This is amazing, Marinette."

"Thanks, Adrien," Marinette said. "It's all vegan fabric. I wasn't sure how you felt about animals being used for clothing... Or how fairies on the whole felt about it."

"Well, we're all ecologically-conscious, but some fairies are a little stricter while others are more loose about it. I mean, fairies _do_ eat meat. We're not all vegans." Adrien explained.

"That's good," Marinette breathed, relieved with the news. "I had to come up with some crazy excuse about trying to have a line of clothes that would appeal to the PETA."

"Well, it's not like that's a completely outlandish reason." Tikki added.

"Tikki's right," Adrien spoke. "That's a pretty solid excuse."

"I'm sure you've had to come up with plenty of excuses to give your father." Marinette sighed.

"Um... Speaking of whom," Adrien began, trying not to scare his girlfriend off. "He wants to meet you."

"Huh?" Marinette asked.

"Long story short, I told him about us, and he wants you over for dinner tomorrow night." Adrien explained.

"What?!" Marinette asked, surprised. "I get to meet Gabriel Agreste?"

"Yeah, as my girlfriend," Adrien said as he held her hand in his own. "Think you can make an excuse to get out of the house tomorrow night?"

"...I'll figure something out." Marinette promised.

"Great!" Adrien said as he gave his girl a hug. Marinette hugged back.

The rest of the night came and went uneventfully, including no akumas. They watched a movie, Marinette ordered some popcorn for the two of them to eat, and

The next day at the school, Marinette was on her tablet, compiling photos of her works into her portfolio, including the ensemble she made for Adrien.

"Hey girl," Alya said as she sat down next to her best friend. "The girls and I are having a night out tonight. You in?"

"I _would_, but..." Marinette began. She looked around to see if either Chloé or Lila were around. Luckily, neither bitch was in sight. She then gestured for Alya to lean in closer so she could whisper. "Listen, I need you and the girls to help me out."

"What's going on?" Alya asked.

"Okay... You know that boy I mentioned?" Marinette questioned. "That boy I met?"

"Oh, yes! Deets, girl?! You two have a date tonight?!" Alya asked, excitedly.

"Something like that," Marinette said. "The truth is, we've been meeting up nightly ever since we met. He has a very strict father, so he has to sneak out of the house to come see me. He _just_ told his father what's going on between us... And as it turns out that his father is a prominent fashion designer himself, he wants to meet me, so... I'm going to his place for dinner tonight."

"Really?! That's awesome, girl!" Alya spoke. "So what do you need us for?"

"The plan is that I would leave the hotel tonight to go to his place, but I was struggling to come up with an excuse. You just gave me the idea. I would keep my phone off while at their house. If either Mrs. Bourgeois or Chloé call you up, tell them that I'm with you or the girls and I might not be back before they're asleep." Marinette explained.

"Got it, girl," Alya said, giving a "perfect" sign. "I'll inform the troops."

"Thanks, Alya," Marinette said. "Now I gotta keep compiling the portfolio to show his father."

"...Hey girl, you haven't given me a name for this dude now that I think about it." Alya brought up.

"Well, I can't say his _full_ name. I'm trying my best to keep this on the DL not only to stay out of trouble with Chloé, but to keep _him_ out of trouble with his father," Marinette explained. "...His first name is Adrien."

"Okay, now it'll be easier to talk about him," Alya said. "So since you two need to sneak around, I guess that means I won't get any photos or other deets about him until it's safe."

Marinette gave a nod in agreement.

"I'll tell the girls," Alya said. "You have fun with your beau tonight."

"Thanks, Alya." Marinette said as she stood up before running off to get more work done.

With Alya, she called a meeting with the girls in the locker room, and made absolute sure that the girls were alone.

The five of them formed what Alya dubbed "The Marinette Protection Squad," which they established when Marinette got taken in by the Bourgeois family _and_ when Lila came along and started giving Marinette grief.

_"Are you serious?!"_ The girls screamed in delight.

"Yep. Marinette's got a date tonight," Alya said. "And we finally have a name for the man, too. But we need to help Marinette out here. Turns out his dad isn't too easygoing, and we _all know_ how bad things are with the Bourgeoises."

"Yeah." "Good point." "We can't take any chances." "That's the last thing we want."

"So, if either the mayor or Mrs. Bourgeois asks, she's spending more time outside with us than usual for fashion show prep or whatever." Alya stated.

"And Chloé?" Alix asked.

"Obviously she'd never ask anything unless it means making Marinette miserable," Mylene stated. "So anything to help Marinette, we all zip our lips!"

"And we don't say anything to Lila either." Alya said, crossing her arms.

"Agreed." Juleka murmured, albeit she was a bit disappointed that Marinette didn't start going out with her brother.

"Okay!" Alya said. "So this concludes the meeting of the Marinette Protection Squad?"

Everyone started murmuring in agreement before doing a group fist-bump.

* * *

That evening, Marinette had dressed up a little more than usual. She had a pale pink cocktail dress on with a straight across neckline, a black sash, and a ruffled, tiered skirt. Her hair was in its usual pigtails, but she had a bit of makeup on. Her shoes were now black flats. She took a deep breath and was walking down the hotel stairs.

"Marinette!" A voice said and Marinette whirled around to see Audrey standing on the top of the stairs. "Where are you going?"

"Girls' night out," Marinette said slickly. "It was all so last minute."

"I see," Audrey stated. "Have fun tonight, and if something comes up, we'll call you."

"You'll probably have better luck calling Alya instead," Marinette informed as she made her way to the door. "I'll text you when I get home, okay?"

"Okay." Audrey said before going back to work.

Marinette left the hotel door, breathed a sigh of relief, then looked around before dashing down the block to another building.

The plan that Marinette and Adrien came up with was to have Marinette walk about a block or so away from the hotel, then Adrien would send his chauffeur out to get her and bring her to the house.

Her phone beeped with a text from Adrien. She picked up the phone and saw an image of a man that looked like a gorilla sitting in the driver's seat. The image came with a message that said, "This is my bodyguard. I just call him the Gorilla. Keep an eye out for him, okay?"

Marinette texted back, "Thanks, Adrien. Here's my location."

Marinette sent a text showcasing her position. She leaned against the building and was trying to breathe.

"Are you okay, Marinette?" Tikki asked.

"Just nervous," Marinette stated as she put her phone back into her bag. "I mean... I'm meeting Adrien's _father_, and he's not just a fashion designer, he's the king of the fairies! Royalty _and_ a fashion pro! What am I going to do?"

"Just stay calm, Marinette," Tikki said. "You have your tablet, don't you?"

"Check," Marinette said as she had her tablet and her sketchbook. "A few things just in case. I want to be prepared in case of anything."

A car pulled up in front of her and the man from the text picture grunted while looking at her.

Marinette climbed into the back seat of the car, and the driver started to leave again. Marinette texted Adrien back, saying, "We're on our way now."

The reply came in seconds: "See you soon," with a heart emoji.

Marinette just sat in silence as the car drove through the city.

Up in his room, Adrien had put on the outfit that Marinette gave him the night before. He was also pacing around, a little nervous.

"Adrien, calm down," Plagg said as he kept eating camembert. "Your bodyguard's bringing your girl over here and your father's _finally_ gonna eat with you."

"That's what worries me." Adrien admitted.

His eyes caught movement from outside his windows. He approached and saw the car pulling up to the house gate.

"She's here!" He said, delighted.

Outside, Marinette was staring at the house, intimidated by its sheer size.

_'THIS is Adrien's house?!' _Marinette thought, spooked.

The driver came around to the back seat and let Marinette out of the car. She took a deep breath and started walking to the door.

The man rang the doorbell, and an eye contraption of some sort popped out from under it. It looked at the pair, then retracted. The gate opened.

Marinette was tense as she made her way to the doors to the building. Once it opened, Marinette was soon face-to-face with Nathalie.

"Ah, you must be Marinette," Nathalie said. "Right on time. Please, come in."

Marinette followed the older woman inside the house. She saw how tastefully-decorated the interior was, and the staircase reminded her of one of those elegant staircases that a princess would enter during a ball scene in a movie.

"Marinette! You're here!" Adrien said as he came running down the stairs. He threw his arms around her, much to her delight.

"Sir, she has arrived." Nathalie announced.

On cue, Gabriel Agreste, Adrien's father, came down the stairs.

Seeing his father, Adrien pulled himself away from Marinette and stood erect.

"F-Father, this is Marinette," Adrien said, stiffly introducing them. "Marinette, meet my father, Gabriel Agreste."

"It... It's nice to meet you sir," Marinette said, but then remembered he was a king. "I-I I mean Your Majesty."

"So you're the girl that my son has taken a shine to. The one he's been sneaking out to see." Gabriel addressed.

"Y-Y-Yes, I am, Your Majesty," Marinette stammered. "It's an honor to meet you."

His face not changing, he stated, "Likewise. Please, follow me to the dining room."

Adrien took Marinette's hand and started following his father and Nathalie to the dining room.

The three of them took their seats. Adrien was at the head of the table while his father and Marinette were flanking both sides of him. The food spread out included roasted beef, scalloped potatoes, sautéd hericot vert and freshly-baked crusty bread rolls with butter.

The group started eating their meal, but the silence was awkward.

"Marinette," Gabriel stated, getting the young girl's attention. "I understand that you're aware of the existence of fairies."

"I am, Your Majesty," Marinette stated. "I'm only aware that you're the king and Adrien himself is the prince. I understand there's a court, but beyond that, I don't know very much."

"Indeed," Gabriel stated. "You're clearly competent at discretion and secrecy."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Marinette thanked before eating some of her potatoes.

The silence was awkward and Adrien was trying to find a way to break it. Seeing her dress, Adrien stated, "Father, I was thinking that Marinette could show you some of her designs after we're done eating?"

"I would appreciate that," Gabriel agreed before turning to Marinette. "If you design as well as you dress, then you're going to go far as a designer."

"Oh, thank you," Marinette said, blushing. "I made this dress myself."

"Looks very well-made and well-designed. And your work suits my son perfectly." Gabriel commented.

Marinette smiled, meanwhile Adrien was relieved.

"Adrien has also informed me of your current living situation," Gabriel began. "I've taken the liberty of having Nathalie look into it. Your parents passed away a few years ago and thus a business friend of mine, Audrey Bourgeois, took you in, is that right?"

"Father!" Adrien spoke. "That's invading her privacy!"

"...That's right, Your Majesty," Marinette admitted, her eyes getting misty. "Audrey Bourgeois took me in and is teaching me a lot about fashion... When she isn't working and when I'm not at the mercy of Chloé."

"I see," Gabriel stated. "I also am aware that you had to sneak out to come this evening."

"The excuse was that I'm spending the night out with my friends," Marinette explained. "...Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Mrs. Bourgeois for taking me in after my parents died, but..."

"Marinette," Adrien said, holding on to her hand. "You're not alone. You have your friends, and you have me. The minute you hit eighteen, you can move out of there and into your best friend Alya's apartment, right?"

"Yes, but that's not gonna be for several months." Marinette elaborated.

"Enough," Gabriel stated. "Once we're finished eating in ten minutes, I expect you to show me your designs, Marinette."

"Understood, Your Majesty." Marinette conceded as they continued eating.

After a few minutes of eating, Marinette pushed her plate away and said, "That was delicious. My praise to the chef."

"Now that we're finished, I'd like to see your portfolio, Marinette." Gabriel said as he stood up.

"Oh, here," Marinette said as she opened her purse and took out her tablet. "All my designs, both sketches and in real life, are in this portfolio. Chloé tends to ruin my works all the time before I can show them off."

As Gabriel and Adrien looked through the pictures, he said, "I have to agree with Audrey about your talent, Marinette. It's unacceptable that Chloé ruins your work all the time. You're very talented."

"Thank you so much, sir!" Marinette said, but then she felt Tikki nudging her from inside the bag. "Oh, um... May I use the bathroom?"

"Yes, you may," Gabriel said. "Nathalie?"

"Follow me, Marinette." Nathalie said as she led Marinette to the bathroom.

Once father and son were alone, Adrien turned to his father and said, "Father...?"

"Adrien," Gabriel said as the faintest of smiles quirked up. "I approve."

Adrien smiled in delight and said, "Thank you, father! I promise you won't regret this!"

In the bathroom, Marinette let Tikki out of the bag and said, "I can't believe that the King of the Fairies likes my work!"

"I knew he would, Marinette!" Tikki added.

Marinette started giggling and laughing with delight as she hugged her little kwami.

A little while later, Marinette came out of the bathroom and Adrien ran up to give her a hug.

"There you are, Marinette!" Adrien said. "Come on, let me show you to my room!"

"Wait, what? Isn't that moving a little fast?" Marinette asked, blushing.

"Don't worry, father told me I can bring you into my room for some privacy so long as don't do anything inappropriate." Adrien said as he started leading Marinette up the stairs and into his bedroom. Adrien's eyes met his father's, who gave him an approving nod.

"...Like father like son, sir?" Nathalie asked.

"Indeed," Gabriel said. "He's just like me when it comes to being in love."

Adrien brought Marinette to a giant set of double-doors and he said, "This is my room."

He opened the door to reveal a giant room that held a foosball table, a rock wall, it was two stories, and it housed so many other things, too. A three-screen computer, a giant TV, etc. It also had a walk-in closet _and_ ensuite bathroom.

"Your room is huge..." Marinette murmured in awe as she saw the huge windows.

"Yeah," Adrien said sadly. "It's big... And lonely."

Marinette looked at him sadly as Adrien locked the door.

"W... Why'd you lock the door?" Marinette asked.

"Don't worry, this is just so that way Nathalie or father won't walk in on us while the kwamis are out." Adrien assured.

"Wait, _kwamis?_" Marinette asked as Tikki came out.

"Yeah, I'm not just the prince of the fairies," Adrien said as he opened his shirt. "You can come out, Plagg."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Plagg asked as he came out with a wedge of cheese in hand.

"Wait, you're..." Marinette said as she looked between the new kwami and her boyfriend. "...Kitty?"

"That's right, m'lady," Adrien said. "I'm also Cat Noir."

"W... Why... Why didn't you tell me?!" Marinette said, about to cry.

"I was going to tell you sooner, but I felt safer telling you here instead of your place. It's super-private in this room." Adrien admitted.

"I... I don't believe this. My superhero partner is my boyfriend now?" Marinette questioned out loud. "The one person I'd trust with my life is also the one I'm dating?"

"Yeah." Adrien said, blushing.

"I... I've never been so happy!" Marinette began.

Marinette started to cry tears of joy. Adrien hugged her close to him as he let Marinette sob into his chest.

"...It's okay, Marinette. Let it out." He said soothingly.

He kissed her forehead multiple times as Marinette continued crying.

"I don't think I've ever felt this safe since before my parents died!" Marinette admitted as the two of them kept hugging each other.

Plagg was gagging while Tikki was watching in delight.

"Are you sure leaving them alone like this is wise?" Nathalie asked as she and Gabriel went into the latter's atelier.

"So long as they don't leave the building, it'll be fine. My next champion will be far away from this house." Gabriel said as he pressed two fingers into the picture of his wife, Emilie. The floor opened up beneath him and he went down through it.

* * *

**Alright! Adrien and Marinette are FINALLY official with Gabriel's approval! And Marinette's also aware that her boyfriend is also her superhero partner. Now Marinette's got more reason to smile and get out of the hotel. **

**So, 10+ reviews and we'll see the next chapter, okay? **

**Coming up, Marinette's happier than ever with Adrien and the girls are helping her keep her secret relationship under wraps. Problem is, Chloé's starting to get a little suspicious. Will she find out about Marinette's royal lover?**


	4. Wilting Privacy

**Okay, guys. Thanks for the encouragement and asking me to keep going. I need the motivation. And I'm sorry for taking so long, too. I had a little bit of writers' block for a while, I needed a bit of a break from writing for a bit, I'm getting bored with this story again, and I'm honestly sort of low-key hating on Adrien right now for his denseness. **

**Let's set another review goal for about 17+, okay? **

**Now in this chapter, Marinette's days are a lot brighter and happier because now she has an excuse to get out of the hotel more often, and she and Adrien are spending a lot of time together. **

**Meanwhile, the girls are curious about when they'll be able to meet Adrien, but Marinette can't tell them the real reasons that they can't meet him. And it's getting even harder to cover that secret on top of her Ladybug secret, especially since Chloé's starting to get a little suspicious.**

**Now, I don't want ANY spoilers for any of the new episodes in the comments! I haven't watched them yet because they aired out of order. **

**Song(s) included (in whole or pieces, with or without modification):**

**So This is Love - Cinderella (1950 version)  
Soon - Thumbelina Soundtrack**

* * *

_"Miraculous Ladybug!" _Ladybug shouted, and the magical ladybugs swept over the city again, cleaning up the mess. Waters were receding back into the river and all the fish were back in the water where they belonged.

It was yet another eco-unfriendly akuma. This time it was a fisherman who was caught trying to keep his catch. The law stated that in order to fish in the Seine, it can only be for sport and people need to release their catch. But even after he was deakumatized, he was still in trouble with the police afterwords.

The pair had to call upon their water power modes to fight the Fisherman.

The two superheroes were bounding away and trying their best to find a place to hide and change back.

They ducked back into an alleyway and let their transformations fall.

"Nice work back there." Tikki praised her owner.

"Thanks, Tikki," Marinette said as she handed her kwami a macaron. "You were amazing, Kitty."

"It was my honor, Princess." Adrien joked while handing his kwami some cheese. The twosome laughed.

"Hey, have you noticed that a lot of these supervillains have been themed after poor environmental ethics recently?" Marinette questioned.

"Yeah, I have," Adrien stated. "I wonder why..."

Marinette heard something going off, then she picked up her phone and said, "Uh-oh! Audrey's expecting me for lunch at the hotel today!"

"The fastest way would be to transform and get back to the hotel! Speaking of which, I'd better get home, too. See you tonight?" Adrien said.

"See you tonight," Marinette said. _"Tikki, spots on!"_

She transformed, then used her yo-yo to get moving. She willed it to stretch all the way to the hotel.

_"Plagg, claws out!" _Adrien said, transforming and changing back into Cat Noir. He immediately got onto the roof and started making his way back home.

Within minutes, Ladybug landed on her balcony, changed back, and dashed into her bedroom. She shut the balcony door.

"That was close," Marinette said as Tikki came out. "And we made it _just_ in time."

There was a loud knock on the door and Audrey spoke, "Marinette, are you in there?"

"Yes, Mrs. Bourgeois, I'm here," Marinette said while Tikki hid. The door opened and Audrey came in. "Just finishing up some homework."

"Very good," Audrey stated. "Now hurry up and get down into the dining room for lunch."

"Will Mayor Bourgeois and Chloé be joining us?" Marinette asked as she followed Audrey to the dining room.

"No," Audrey stated. "Chloé and André are going to be having lunch elsewhere while on political business."

"Okay," Marinette stated as she and Audrey made it to the dining room and sat down. "So... What's going on?"

"I'd like to see photos of that outfit you were making with those vegan fabrics." Audrey said.

"Um, here," Marinette said as she took out her tablet and showed Audrey a photo of the finished product. "I..."

Audrey looked it over with a stern eye before saying, "The fact that you can't show off your designs in the flesh without that daughter of mine ruining them is unacceptable. This is one of your best pieces yet."

"Thank you, Mrs. Bourgeois." Marinette said as she put the tablet away.

"Now, let's eat," Audrey said. "And we can talk about your next move."

"Next move?" Marinette asked.

"Future projects," Audrey elaborated. "I still intend on making you a big name in fashion, no matter what happens."

"Thank you," Marinette thanked before beginning to talk about more of her designs. "...Maybe a few spots here and there."

"Spots are Ladybug's signature. It's been done to death at this point," Audrey disagreed. "How about we try stripes or something else?"

"Yeah, that might be a good idea..." Marinette said, understanding.

That evening, Marinette was up in her room (with the door locked of course), and she was sketching a few more pieces at random, taking Audrey's advice while putting her own twists and turns on it.

"This is beautiful so far, Marinette." Tikki said.

"Thanks, Tikki," Marinette thanked. "Hopefully Audrey likes it when it's done."

Her phone started going off. Marinette picked up the phone and saw Alya's picture with "video talk" on it. She picked up the call and said, "Hey Alya."

"Hey girl! Meeting up with Adrien again tonight?" Alya spoke.

"Yeah," Marinette said. "He should be here soon."

"The girls have been wondering about when we'll get to meet him in person." Alya informed her.

"No! You can't!" Marinette said in a panic.

"What? Why not?" Alya asked.

"Um, like I said, super-strict father. If he found out, Adrien would _never_ hear the end of it." Marinette explained.

"Good point," Alya said. "But why's his dad so strict?"

"I don't know," Marinette said. "But I guess having super-strict and scary guardians is one of the reasons Adrien and I have a connection going on."

Adrien landed on the balcony. Realizing Marinette was on the phone, he hid his wings.

"Marinette? Who's that on the phone with you?" Adrien asked as he came into the room.

Marinette whipped her head around and said, "Adrien?! You're early!"

"No, I think I'm on time. You must've been so focused on your phone chat that you didn't notice." Adrien said. He came into the phone's view.

"Girl, is that Adrien?!" Alya said with a big smile on her face. "You told me he was handsome, but _damn_, not _this_ handsome!"

"Alya!" Marinette spoke, blushing red in the face.

"Oh, you must be Alya," Adrien said, turning to the phone screen. "Marinette's mentioned you a lot."

"Well, I _am_ her BFF," Alya joked. "It's nice to meet you, Adrien."

"Nice to meet you, too," Adrien said. "Too bad we can't meet in person."

"Yeah, too bad," Alya said. "The girls are going on and on about how they want to meet you."

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Adrien admitted. "My father only _just_ started letting me go out to see Marinette."

"And it doesn't help that if Adrien gets caught by any of the Bourgeoises, there'd be trouble," Marinette added. "Who knows how Audrey would react. Not to mention Chloé."

"Yeah, I see the point," Alya agreed. "Anyway, I'll get out of your hair and let the two of you have your alone time. See you tomorrow at school, girl."

Alya hung up.

"That was a relief," Marinette said, sighing. "She didn't see your wings."

"I hid them before coming in." Adrien said as Marinette stood up.

"And it's a good thing kwamis can't be recorded or photographed." Plagg added.

"Yeah, makes it easy to video chat with Tikki out in the open. She won't show up on the camera." Marinette said as she held Tikki to her cheek.

"Ready for another night of nature-related fun?" Adrien asked.

"You know I am!" Marinette said. She ran to her bedroom light and turned it off before turning back to Adrien.

The pair went out to the balcony while the kwamis hid in their usual places. Adrien formed his wings.

Adrien took her hand, shrunk down, and the two of them flew off.

Once again, Adrien took her to the flower gardens. He grew to normal size, took a pink rose out of the meadow, used some magic to remove the thorns, then slipped it behind Marinette's ear. She giggled and hugged Adrien. He snapped his fingers and they shrunk down again.

The two of them kept flying around the flowers.

"Hey, look down there!" Adrien said as he pointed out some flowers that were in full bloom.

He brought her to a fairly large daisy.

"Shall we share a dance?" Adrien asked.

"Great idea!" Marinette said as Adrien took them down and they landed on the petals.

He held out his hand, inviting her to put it in his hand. The subtle moonlight bathed the lovers in its glow. But they were only focused on each other. As for the music, they didn't need any. They had enough music in their hearts for the evening.

The two of them started to dance.

As they began their waltz, Marinette started humming, singing, _"So this is love... *Humming*... So this is love..."_

They did another underarm turn with each other before Marinette continued to sing. She looked Adrien in the eyes before singing, _"So this is what makes life divine." _

Adrien chuckled before letting Marinette continue singing.

_"I'm all aglow... *Humming* and now I know..." _Marinette trilled.

_"And now I know..." _Adrien sang back.

_"The key to our heaven is mine." _They sang together while doing some more turns.

He took her into his arms and flew up into the air. He held her hands and kept flying and dancing in the air.

_"My heart has wings, and I can fly." _Marinette sang as Adrien took them higher up into the sky, closer to the stars.

He hugged her tightly before spinning around with her in his arms. They were higher in the sky than earlier.

_"I'll touch every star in the sky." _They crooned in tandem.

As they continued their flight in the sky, they zoomed across the flowers, garnering the attention of the local insects.

_"So this is the miracle I've been dreaming of..." _They sang together.

Adrien brought Marinette up to the top of a sunflower in one of the patches. They sat on the seeds and started watching the moon.

_"So this is love..." _They crooned.

They snuggled up closer to each other, and Adrien put his arm around her shoulders. They kept stargazing and looking at the moon, like nothing else mattered. It was peaceful.

"It's beautiful tonight, isn't it?" Adrien said.

"It sure is," Marinette said, before sighing wistfully. She kept her eyes on the moon. "I just..."

"What's the matter, Marinette?" Adrien questioned.

"It's so weird," Marinette began. "I never thought I'd be able to find romance until _after_ I got out of that hotel. But... everything happens for a reason, I guess."

Adrien gave her a smile and said, "I know how you feel."

The pair stayed like that for a little while. No akumas, no family drama, no worries. So they decided to enjoy the moment.

* * *

The next day at school, Marinette's mind was still the previous evening. As she kept humming and sketching in her book, she was oblivious to something: Chloé had walked into the room and she noticed Marinette's mood.

"Ugh, seeing her all cheerful is annoying," Chloé spat before walking away. "And it's been even worse lately. Yeah, mom's praise is nice, but it can't be just _that_. Maybe that stupid journalist knows something."

She started walking through the halls to find Alya.

Out in the school yard...

"I'm telling you girls, I actually got to talk to him over the phone! Video chat, no less!" Alya insisted to the girls. "Blonde, green eyes, nice tan! Not to mention he's so polite! I mean, Marinette _scored!_"

"That's great! But it's too bad we can't meet him in person." Rose commented.

"Yeah, but if the Bourgeoises found out about this guy and word got back to his dad, who knows what'll happen to _both_ of them." Alix added.

"All the more reason we can't talk about _any _of this when we're not in private." Alya confirmed.

"Yeah. I don't think I've ever seen Marinette so-" Myléne began, but the girls tensed up.

"Red alert! Blonde bitch coming our way at 2 o'clock!" Alya spoke. The girls saw Chloé approaching.

"Oh great! What does _she_ want?" Alix complained.

"Whatever it is, we don't give her _anything_, okay?" Alya whispered to the others.

They all nodded.

"Césaire," Chloé said as she approached Alya. "You and Marinette are BFF's, right?"

"Your point?" Alya asked with a cold tone.

"Have you noticed how happy she is lately?" Chloé questioned.

"Of course," Alya said. "I mean, it's great to see she's happy! After all, she has an adoptive sister in _you_."

"Whatever," Chloé spat. "Listen, any ideas what's gotten her so peppy?"

"No clue," Alya lied slickly. Being Rena Rouge helped her with her discretion skills. "Maybe the fact that she finally told your mom on you and now her designs are safe from your wrath? Other than that, what could it be?"

"I see..." Chloé said, still a little suspicious. "Well, even if _you_ don't know anything, I'll find out! And when I do..."

"You leave Marinette alone!" Alya hissed. "You've tormented her enough. Whatever's brought her happiness, don't you _dare_ ruin it!"

Chloé scoffed before walking away.

"We'd better be careful," Alya spoke to the girls as she took out her phone and texted a brief warning to Marinette. "Looks like she might be catching on."

Marinette kept humming and sketching before she heard her phone go off. She picked it up and saw there was a text from Alya.

_Alya: Watch out. Chloé was just asking me about why you're so happy. Be __careful._

Marinette texted back a reply.

_Marinette: Thanks for the heads' up, Alya. I'll be on alert._

"Oh boy..." Marinette said as she and Tikki looked at each other. She sent Adrien a quick text, feeling paranoid about actually calling him under the circumstances.

At Adrien's house, he was playing video games in his bedroom when Plagg heard Adrien's text alert go off.

"Adrien, your phone." Plagg said.

"Thanks, Plagg." Adrien said as he picked up the phone and saw Marinette's message.

_Marinette: We need to be even _MORE_ careful now. Alya told me that Chloé's getting suspicious about my joyfulness._

Adrien's stomach dropped as he and Plagg looked over the message.

"Damn, and I thought you two _were_ being careful," Plagg said. "Looks like you'll have to take even more precautions."

There was a knock on the door, and Plagg hid.

"Come in." Adrien said.

Nathalie came into the room, and said, "Adrien, your Chinese tutor is running late. In the meantime, your father wants you to talk to Marinette and set up another appointment so she can present more of her designs to him."

"Um, speaking of Marinette..." Adrien began.

* * *

Lunchtime rolled around, and Marinette was ready to get something to eat with her friends.

_"I know he's the one... Somewhere... The one. He's sure to find me soon," _Marinette sang quietly as she was packing up to go and meet up with Alya. _"After the rain goes, there are rainbows... I'll find our rainbow soon." _

Tikki flew around happily and she smiled, happy her owner was in a happy relationship.

_"Soon it won't be just pretend. Soon our happy ending," _Marinette trilled before looking out the window. _"Oh can you hear me. If you're near me. Sing our son sure and strong and soon." _

"It's great to see you happy!" Tikki said with a giggle.

"Marinette!" Chloé's screeching voice shouted out. Tikki hid.

Chloé barged into the classroom and said, "Shall we go home?"

"What? Why?" Marinette asked.

"Mommy lectured me about trying to be a better sister to you," Chloé scoffed - Marinette mentally called her "sister's" bluff. "So, I'm insisting that we go back to the hotel and get lunch. Try to bond, like sisters do."

"I was going to go with the girls." Marinette admitted.

"Ugh, doesn't matter," Chloé said, snagging Marinette by the wrist. "We're getting lunch at home!"

Marinette took her phone out and sent a text to Alya, telling her what was going on.

_Marinette: Chloé's dragging me back to the hotel for lunch. Trying to "bond," she says. *Fearful face and tongue sticking out face emojis*_

Alya read out the text, then replied.

_Alya: Don't give her a thing, girl!_

_Marinette: No need to tell me twice, Alya. I can do this._

At the hotel, Marinette was sitting at one of the best tables, across from Chloé, who was still filing her nails and refusing to meet Marinette's eyes.

"So..." Marinette began, trying to make conversation.

"Listen, I don't like that you're mommy's favorite, Dupain-Cheng," Chloé scoffed. "But she's insisting that we try to get along better, so this is my first step doing so."

"Okay..." Marinette said, but her gut was telling her otherwise.

"So... You've been hanging out in your room a _lot_ lately," Chloé pointed out. "Anything interesting going on?"

"Other than designing?" Marinette asked, tensing up.

"Is that _really_ all you're doing in there?" Chloé asked again, her tone hardening. "It can't just be designs and homework. You almost never come out unless it's meals, school, your friends, or if mommy _insists_ on seeing you."

Marinette swallowed a little bit in her throat, and said, "Streaming videos, looking at memes or vines, Pinterest..."

"Okay, okay, I get the point," Chloé said, waving Marinette off. "But you've been happier lately. Too happy for my taste. So spill it."

"Spill what?" Marinette asked, a confident smile on her face. "Nothing's really changed, aside from feeling that my designs are safe from you thanks to Mrs. Bourgeois."

"Don't give me that," Chloé spat as Marinette lost sight of one of Chloé's hands. "Something's going on. So tell me. I won't say or do anything."

"Your fingers are crossed, Chloé," Marinette said with a sigh. Chloé scowled. "Don't pull this with me. You're always looking for ways to make me unhappy."

Marinette made to leave, but Chloé snagged her by the back of her blazer and snarled, "You're _going_ to tell me what's up!"

"Why should I tell you things that aren't happening, Chloé?!" Marinette screamed.

"Because I can tell when something's happening! Did Ladybug recruit _you_ of all people to help with an akuma?!" Chloé accused.

"What? Me? Recruited by Ladybug?" Marinette asked. "That's insane, Chloé. You know me. I'm such a klutz that I could _never_ pull off being one of Ladybug's teammates."

Chloé scoffed and said, "Ugh, can't argue with _that_."

Marinette ripped her blazer out of Chloé's manicured claws before running for the restaurant door. She saw Butler Jean coming in with a platter of fresh bread rolls with butter on them.

She snagged a few before shouting, "Thanks, Jean-Yves!"

Marinette ran out, texting Alya to wait for her as she ran for her friends.

"Mademoiselle, were you trying to forge a connection with Marinette?" Jean-Yves asked.

"Not even close. She's too happy for nothing to be going on. I don't know what, but I'm gonna find out what she's up to and ruin it for her!" Chloé declared.

"Do you think Ladybug would be happy with you if you did that, Mademoiselle?" Jean-Yves asked again. "You could risk causing a very fearsome akumatization."

Chloé paused at that question, but she shook her head and said, "Doesn't matter to me."

Jean-Yves shook his head.

* * *

The immediate second Marinette got back from school, she made a dash for her bedroom. She didn't stop to talk to Audrey or André, only shouting the excuse that she had to do her homework.

She threw the door open, flew in, then slammed it shut before leaning up against it.

"That was a rough day. Lunch was too close for comfort, Marinette." Tikki said.

"No kidding," Marinette agreed. "Chloé doesn't suspect anything about me being Ladybug, but I don't think I threw her off the scent about everything else."

"All the more reason to be alert when Chloé's talking to you in the future." Tikki added.

"...I'm not feeling too safe here anymore," Marinette added. "At this rate, it's only a matter of time before Chloé finds out about Adrien, or me being Ladybug, or even _both_. Maybe I should hurry up and move into Alya's house sooner than later."

"Probably a good idea." Tikki said.

To take her mind off of things while waiting for Adrien, Marinette went back to one of her unfinished projects - a dress she was intending on making to wear at any future gala functions the Bourgeoises would hold.

There was a light trail coming into her room in a hurry, and then Adrien grew to human size.

"Adrien! You're early!" Marinette said, surprised to see him before dusk.

She ran over to him and he caught her in his arms.

"Yeah, I got my father's permission to come here sooner rather than later - told him it was a bit of an emergency." Adrien admitted.

"Perfect timing, too. Chloé's beginning to grow wise to what's going on. I'm getting kind of scared. She was interrogating me about it earlier at lunch, and I just barely got out of it without giving anything away." Marinette admitted.

"Then it's a good thing I came early," Adrien spoke. "I've been talking with my father, and we came up with a plan..."

"I'm listening." Marinette said.

Back in the hotel restaurant, the Bourgeoises were getting ready for dinner. As Jean-Yves was setting the table, Audrey began looking around before saying, "Jean-Yves, where's Marinette?"

"She must still be in her room, Madame." Jean-Yves answered.

"Claudia - er, Chloé, go and get her." Audrey ordered.

"Why do _I_ have to-?!" Chloé began, but Audrey stared her down.

"I said, go and get your sister for dinner." Audrey repeated.

"Ugh, _fine!_" Chloé spat before turning on her heel and making her way up the stairs to go to Marinette's bedroom.

She kept grumbling and griping under her breath about having to go and get her "sister," complaining about why Jean-Yves couldn't go and get Marinette instead. But as she approached the door, she could've sworn she heard voices.

"...And then we'll be done. It'll be a cinch." A male voice said from inside.

Chloé quietly gasped at the sound. There was a boy in Marinette's room?!

She placed her ear against the door to listen in.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, there has to be another way." Marinette spoke.

"I don't see any other options, Marinette. That so-called "sister" of yours clearly couldn't less about your happiness or success. Doesn't seem like she ever _has_. And your "parents" don't seem like they care what goes on with you unless it's fashion related," That same voice said in reply. "We can end your suffering, and they'll be _happy_ for you while also being none the wiser."

"This whole thing is insane, you know that?" Marinette questioned.

Silence. Chloé gently cracked the door open and saw Marinette with a blonde Adonis, standing on the balcony.

"You're not gonna take any hits, but what about me?" Marinette asked. "Everything's going to change."

"Exciting, huh?" Adrien asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah, but... Also frightening." Marinette admitted.

"I know," Adrien stated, placing his hands on Marinette's shoulder. "Change can be scary. But look at it like this: you'll still be you, and you'll still be able to live the life you do now, but you'll be out of here."

"It's weird... I'll be leaving all of this behind, but you won't be able to do the same." Marinette stated.

"I'll be fine," Adrien stated. "...If the life I have laid out for me by my father is truly set in stone, then I want to make it the happiest life ever. I want to surround myself with people that make me happy. I want to live my life with _you _by my side. If we do this, then we'll _both_ be free!"

"...Okay, let's do it." Marinette said, a determined, ready smile on her face.

"Princess!" Adrien said with a delighted smile and he gave his girlfriend a hug.

After breaking it, the two of them held hands.

"...I can't believe I'm going to do this." Marinette said, looking her lover in the eyes.

He chuckled and said, "You can't exactly become Princess of the Fairies of France without the two of us getting married, _mon cher_."

_'PRINCESS?! Fairies?!' _Chloé thought, appalled that _she_ wasn't the one being proposed to by royalty.

She saw Adrien step back and start glowing. Sparkles rained down on him and she saw his wings sprout from behind his back.

Chloé covered her mouth, nearly gasping.

"I'll come for you tomorrow night, Marinette. My father will take you in as a live-in apprentice and intern, and that'll be the story we'll stick to until we officially marry. Once we're fairy and wife, we'll go through the spell necessary to turn you into a permanent fairy. Then you'll be accepted amongst the court without any problem. And no one will know realize a thing." Adrien spoke.

"But what about the Bourgeoises?" Marinette questioned. "What are we going to tell them?"

"We'll figure something out," Adrien said. "But be sure you're packed with the essentials. I can use some magic to teleport the heavier stuff to the mansion. There's more than enough space."

"Thanks, Adrien. You're my hero." Marinette said as she once again gave him a hug.

He chuckled and said, "...You've never needed a hero of your own, _mon amour_."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Adrien." Marinette said before leaning in for a kiss.

"Not yet, _chérie_," Adrien said, placing a finger to her lips. "If I kiss you now, I won't want to leave."

"Speaking of which, you'd better make like a banana and split," Marinette said, looking around frantically. "If someone sees you..."

"No need to finish that," Adrien said before taking off. "I'll see you tomorrow night."

"Alright, Adrien." Marinette said as her boyfriend flew off into the night.

Chloé was _not_ happy about the turn of events. But then her cruel mind started cooking up a wicked scheme to snag that fairy prince for herself...

"Marinette! Dinner!" Chloé shouted about thirty seconds later.

"Coming, Chloé!" Marinette said, turning out the lights.

Marinette came out of her room and started running for the dining room. The blonde's face went from blank to devious, and a nasty smile crept up.

* * *

**OH NO! Chloé's found out! This is going to be trouble. But hey, better Chloé than someone else, am I right? *Cough* Lila *Cough* Off with her head *Cough***

**And if you guys caught it, that scene where Chloé catches Marinette and Adrien was modeled off that major reveal scene in "A Single Pale Rose" from Steven Universe. **

**Now, again, 17+ reviews and chapter 5 (the finale) will be up. **

**Coming up, Chloé's got a plan to get Adrien into her clutches! And when or if Marinette finds out about it, what will she do? **


	5. Never Gonna Fall

**Okay, the finale for the story is up (finally)! I was seriously thinking of quitting on this story again. Besides, I wanna focus more on "Wedding Ladybug," and Lukanette because that's my current favorite pairing! Speaking of Wedding Ladybug, leave a review if you don't mind? **

**Anyway, let's summarize the final chapter (short as it is): Marinette and Adrien are preparing for Marinette's escape plan, meanwhile Chloé's got a scheme to snag Adrien. Luckily for us, it's flawed and stupid. What she gets right is how she's able to get Marinette out of the way, at least for a little while. There's gonna be some adult implications here, but work with me okay? Wanna make sure I show how ridiculous, utterly ridiculous, Chloé's plan is going to be. **

**Song(s) included (with or without modifications):**

**Let Me Be Your Wings Finale - Thumbelina Soundtrack  
**

* * *

The next morning, which was a weekend, had Marinette holing up in her room as per usual. But this time she was doing something more important than designing clothes.

"It's finally happening, Marinette." Tikki said as she was flying around the room.

Marinette was packing suitcases and bags.

"I know. Isn't it great, Tikki?" Marinette asked. "It's like something out of a fairy tale. Only instead of a wicked stepmother, I have a cruel adoptive sister."

"But that won't be a problem for much longer." Tikki giggled.

There was a sound outside the balcony, and Marinette got curious. Her gut was telling her to check it out. She went to the window, and saw the car that belonged to the police lieutenant, Roger Raincomprix, and out of the passenger seat came his daughter, Sabrina, Chloé's "best friend" and servant.

Marinette pulled a sour look. She'd tried to get Sabrina to ditch Chloé before, but it didn't stick. She was still on good terms with Sabrina, though. And usually, Sabrina would often come over to do Chloé's dirty work, such as homework, amongst other things. Other times they would do some Ladybug and Cat Noir LARP-ing and needless to say, Chloé always _had_ to be Ladybug.

Marinette caught Sabrina's eye, and the redhead gave Marinette a wave. Even though she was Chloé's lackey, Marinette's repeated kindness always rewarded her whenever Sabrina was concerned.

"There you are, Sabrina!" Chloé barked as she stomped outside the hotel and made her way to Sabrina. She then snagged the redhead by the wrist and dragged her inside.

Marinette went back indoors to continue packing.

"Is everything okay, Marinette?" Tikki asked her owner.

"Everything's fine, but for some reason I feel like Sabrina isn't here for their usual LARP-ing," Marinette admitted. "Think I might be overthinking it?"

"You tend to do that," Tikki confirmed. "But if your instincts are telling you to be cautious, listen to them."

Marinette smiled at her kwami before taking out her sewing kit to pack it.

Sabrina and Chloé were walking through the hotel halls.

"I'm ready to play, Chloé! So, you've got the costumes, right? I'll be Cat Noir as always!" Sabrina began.

"Not today, Sabrina," Chloé said, a cruel smile on her face. "We're going to do something a little different today."

"Of course, anything!" Sabrina started, delighted.

"We're going to do some research!" Chloé stated, crossing her arms.

"Research? That's not like you, Chloé," Sabrina asked. "What's the matter? What kind of research?"

"We're going to research _fairies_," Chloé elaborated. "How to capture them."

"Fairies? Really?" Sabrina asked. "What's going on?"

Chloé brought Sabrina up to speed about what happened the previous night.

"...I really can't say I'm fully convinced, Chloé," Sabrina admitted. "Magical superheroes I can understand, but fairies? That's a bit of a stretch, isn't it?"

"No, it's not! And you're going to come up with a plan to capture that fairy prince!" Chloé ordered as she brought Sabrina to her room.

Meanwhile, Adrien was magically preparing one of the many guest rooms in the house as Marinette's room. He decorated the interior walls in pale pink with white polka dots. Adrien had a designated area for her sewing, including adding a few mannequins and the like for her projects. The room was only about half the size of Adrien's room, but it was still pretty substantial. The bed was a queen-size and the bedspread matched the interior.

"It's looking good, kid," Plagg commented. "She'll be happy when she sees this."

"Yeah," Adrien agreed. "She'll love it. And then we'll have our happily-ever-after."

"I'm surprised your father's letting you do this," Plagg stated. "It's almost as if won't hesitate to ruin anything and everything makes you happy."

"At least he's granting me _this_ much of a desire," Adrien said sadly. "And he's willing to work with me to get it done, too."

Footsteps were heard and Plagg hid.

"Adrien," Gabriel said as he came in to check on his son. "How is this coming along?"

"It's going very well, father," Adrien stated. "All it needs is Marinette's furniture back at the hotel and her sewing machine, and we'll be good."

"Excellent," Gabriel said, his tone unchanging. "The fairy court is fully on board with your intentions to make her your queen. So long as our fairy secret stays under wraps."

Adrien gave a nod as his father left the room.

In Chloé's room, Sabrina was working on something with her hands while Chloé was rummaging around in her closet.

"No, not attractive enough... No, doesn't match my hair. _UGH! _There _has_ to be something in here that'll seduce that prince!" Chloé griped.

"How's this?" Sabrina asked as she held up her project.

Chloé looked it over before saying, "Too small! Keep going!"

"Okay, Chloé!" Sabrina said as she started weaving again.

Chloé kept throwing clothes out of her closet to try and find something.

"Aha! Perfect..." She said as she reached into her closet.

* * *

The sun was starting to go down that afternoon, and Marinette was checking all of her bases. She started hiding her suitcases and bags wherever she could in her room.

"Oh, come on... Where'd I put it?" Marinette asked.

"Where'd you put what?" Tikki questioned.

"My diary and the magic box," Marinette began. "Where is it?!"

"Over on your bed, Marinette." Tikki said, pointing it out.

"Thanks, Tikki," Marinette said as she dashed over to her bed, took the diary, and then tossed it into her backpack before hiding it in the closet. "How'd I survive my life without you?"

"You were a different person before we met, Marinette. But now you've grown so much." Tikki complimented.

Marinette hugged Tikki close to her cheek and they snuggled a little.

"Now let's go and check to see if Mr. and Mrs. Bourgeois are busy. If they are, we're in the clear. If not, we'll proceed as planned." Marinette said Tikki flew into the bag.

She made to open the door when she heard frantic knocking.

"Marinette! Open up! Please!" Someone shouted. Sabrina.

Marinette threw the door open and said, "Sabrina? What's going on?"

"Didn't Alya tell you?!" Sabrina started.

"Didn't Alya tell me what?" Marinette asked.

Sabrina dragged Marinette out of the bedroom and said, "It's Anansi! She sustained a _major_ injury during her match today! Oh dear... I mean, Alya just told me that they got back from the hospital!"

"Wait, why tell _you?_" Marinette asked, already smelling a rat. "Unless the injury was so bad that they had to call 112..."

"Oh, it _was_ that bad! The only reason I know was because I was with my dad at the time!" Sabrina lied.

"Really?!" Marinette asked. "Why didn't Alya call me?!"

"She must've been so busy with everything that she forgot." Sabrina suggested.

"No! I... I gotta go check on her!" Marinette shouted before running down the hallways. "Thanks, Sabrina!"

Once she was out of sight, Chloé snuck into Marinette's bedroom and closed the door. She shut the lights out and started to set up her trap.

"Marinette, this is Chloé's right hand we're talking about," Tikki said from her hiding spot. "How do you know this isn't another one of Chloé's plots?"

"I'm thinking it might be, but Sabrina's nice enough when she's on her own," Marinette said as she kept running. "And yes, there are some things about that story that don't make any sense, but I should at least check!"

Her gut was screaming at her not to believe what she was hearing, but Marinette burst out of the hotel in a rush to run for Alya's, just as the sun fully set, missing the light trail heading to her balcony.

Adrien had shrunk and he was flying to Marinette's room like usual. As he approached the hotel, he noticed something was wrong: the lights were out.

_'Something's up.' _He thought, his guard up.

He got to the balcony, grew back to human size, and cautiously looked around. He stepped into the room. Nothing. He took another step, but again, nothing happened.

Third step, though, that's when things switched up. He heard something snap, wheels turning, and then he felt something fold up underneath him and tangle him up. He screamed as he soon found himself inside a net, hanging from the ceiling.

"What's going on?!" He shouted.

The lights came on, and Adrien's eyes went wide as his face turned as green as his face.

There was Chloé, wearing a golden bathrobe and was barefoot. She was smirking and her arms were crossed.

"Looks like my trap worked," She boasted as she started approaching. "Looks like catching fairies is easier than it sounds."

"Chloé," Adrien growled as she got close to him. "Where's Marinette?! What did you do to her?!"

She scowled and said, "So you're still worried about that loser even though _I'm_ in front of you?"

"Don't make me repeat myself," Adrien stated with an annoyed sigh. "What did you do to Marinette?"

"Forget that tramp," Chloé said, waving his questions off. "You have _me_ now. If you're looking for a fairy princess, I'm _clearly_ better-suited than _she_ is."

"So you found out about us, huh?" Adrien asked.

"Yeah, I overheard you two flirting last night," Chloé said. "And Marinette's not here. Now, let's have a little fun..."

She untied her bathrobe and let it fall to the floor, revealing she was wearing a golden-yellow negligee. It was clearly silken.

Adrien held back a gag as she put her hand against his cheek, started leaning in for a kiss, and held her phone out for a selfie.

Marinette was now furiously ringing the doorbell at the Césaire apartment. Alya opened the door, before saying, "Marinette?!"

"I'm here!" Marinette shouted. "Here to help with Anansi! What can I do?! Is she okay?!"

Alya, confused, gave Marinette a worried look.

"Whoa, what, slow down, Marinette. What's that about Nora?" Alya asked. "She's totally fine. This is Nora we're talking about. Whatever gave you the idea something was wrong with her? Or that she was hurt from her match?"

"Sabrina told... No! Don't tell me..." Marinette said, realizing she'd been tricked.

Just then, a text message from Chloé appeared on her phone. It contained a photo of Chloé kissing Adrien on the cheek, but he _clearly_ wasn't having it. Problem was, he was tied up.

Marinette read the text aloud, saying, _"'So much for your wedding, Dupain-Cheng! Now that blonde cutie is MINE and I'LL be a princess, not YOU! Good luck surviving!'" _

"Princess? What does she mean?" Alya asked.

Marinette started crying instead of answering. But Alya got the idea and said, "So, Chloé found out about you and Adrien, huh?"

Marinette just started sobbing into Alya's chest. It was all the reporter needed to hear to confirm her theory.

"That bitch has crossed the line now!" Alya spat. "Come in, girl. Once you calm down, we'll go back to the hotel, get your things, and you're coming home with me for good."

Alya brought Marinette inside to let her cry.

Meanwhile, Chloé had put her phone down. She was now forcing herself onto Adrien, but he wasn't really moving or trying to break free.

"Now that that little turd is out of the way... Shall we get to the canoodling, princey-pie?" Chloé purred as she tried to get her hands on Adrien.

Adrien heaved a sigh before snapping his fingers. Instantly, the net was empty and Adrien was standing in the center of the room.

"How'd you-?!" Chloé barked.

"You've been watching way too much "Fairly Odd Parents" lately," Adrien said tersely. "Fairies can't be trapped by butterfly nets. That was a pretty stupid plan of yours, Chloé."

"Oh please, if _anyone's_ stupid, it-" Chloé began, but Adrien snapped his fingers again, forcing Chloé's mouth shut. She tried to speak, but her mouth was sealed closed.

"Don't you _dare_ speak disrespectfully of Marinette _again_," Adrien sternly said before approaching. "Do you have any idea what you've done? You've basically committed a major crime."

Chloé tried talking again, only for muffled shouts to come out.

Then, more fairies appeared out of the air and they all grew to human size.

"Your Highness, we heard your summons," One guard said. "How may we be of service?"

"Take this girl to the fairy prisons and make sure the strongest trapping spells are in place in her cell. Also, make sure we erase the memories of anyone she's told about us. Only the memories relating to fairies, though. She's under arrest." Adrien said.

Magic handcuffs appeared on Chloé's hands, binding them behind her. Chloé shouted in protest, but with her mouth magically sealed shut it was impossible.

There was banging on the door and Audrey Bourgeois shouted, "Marinette! What's going on in there?!"

Adrien snapped his fingers to put on disguises for everyone. All of the fairy guards were now disguised as human bodyguards, and they all hid their wings. Adrien then waved his hand to open the door, and the Bourgeois parents came in. They saw Chloé in cuffs and gasped in shock.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Audrey screamed.

"My apologies for this situation, Mme. Bourgeois," Adrien said with a bow. "My name is Adrien Agreste."

"Why... Oh, you're Gabriel's son!" Audrey began. "What is going on?!"

"I've been secretly seeing your daughter, Marinette, and I intended on bringing her to live with me at my mansion with my father and I this evening." Adrien explained.

"I _did_ get a phone call from Gabriel, asking about Marinette. That explains it," Audrey began. "But don't change the subject! What are you doing with Chloé?!"

"I'm afraid your daughter has been doing some... questionable things, and my bodyguards are taking her into legal custody. She's facing charges of attempted rape and kidnapping." Adrien explained.

"What?! No!" André shouted. "I won't allow it! As the mayor, I-"

Adrien put a hand up and said, "With all due respect, Mayor Bourgeois, as far as my father and I are concerned, your status as the mayor is inconsequential. And considering the abuse she's been subjecting Marinette to, that's another charge we can add."

Once again, Chloé tried to scream in protest, only for muffled shouts to come out of her mouth.

"Chloé, you could be facing so much worse," Adrien whispered with a resigned sigh. "I could've magically made it so that way it's like you never existed."

The guards started taking Chloé away, and Adrien once again told the Bourgeois parents, "Again, I'm sorry for this, but as of tonight, Marinette will be living with me and my father. She'll be taken under his wing."

"...Well, if Marinette can blossom as a designer, I have no objections," Audrey began. "As for Chloé... What she's done is _inexcusable!_"

"I agree." Adrien said with a sad nod as the the Bourgeois parents left.

He clapped his hands and all of Marinette's items disappeared in sparkles. Transported to her room at the Agreste mansion.

"But now to find Marinette and make sure she's okay..." Adrien said.

Once he was sure that he was alone, he shrunk down to size and flew out the window to find Marinette.

Out on Alya's balcony, Marinette was on the verge of tears. The cruel text from Chloé was ringing in her ears and she wanted it _out_.

"Marinette, there's no way Adrien fell for that. He's a fairy - he wouldn't be trapped by something so simple." Tikki reassured.

Instead of replying, Marinette sang, _"You will be my wings... You will be my only love. You will take me far beyond the stars..."_

Marinette looked up to the sky, tears streaming down her face.

Tikki looked at Marinette sadly, unsure how to reassure her in this state.

_"You will be my wings. You will lift me high above. Everything we're dreaming of we'll soon be ours. Anything that we desire, anything at all... Every day you'll take me higher..." _Marinette sang, but then she stopped.

She didn't notice a light trail coming after her.

"Oh, who am I fooling, Tikki? Chloé's found out about Adrien and the fairies, it's all my fault, and Adrien's _never_ going to come back for me!" Marinette cried.

_"And I'll never let you fall!" _Adrien crooned loudly as he appeared in full size in front of her.

"...You, it's you... Adrien, you're okay!" Marinette squealed, crying tears of joy.

He flew onto the balcony, grabbed Marinette up into his arms, and flew up into the air. They were laughing at the reunion.

"How'd you-" Marinette asked, only to be silenced with a kiss.

"I could hear you singing." Adrien chuckled.

"But how'd you get away from Chloé?" Marinette asked.

"It was a piece of cake," Adrien replied. "Basically, I magically labeled her a criminal to the fairy realm and she'll be tried as one on charges of attempted rape, _and_ kidnapping and holding me hostage."

"Isn't that a bit harsh?" Marinette questioned.

"Not really. You should've seen what she was wearing." Adrien said before shuddering.

The two of them started laughing before Adrien kissed Marinette again.

"Now let's get back to the mansion." Adrien said as he shifted Marinette in his arms and started to carry her like a princess.

"But what about Alya?" Marinette asked.

"Yeah, what about _me?_" Alya said, and then the twosome saw Alya staring at them with her hands on her hips and smiling.

"Um, Alya?!" Marinette shouted. "What just... I-I can explain!"

"No need. I saw enough. Your boyfriend is a fairy prince who proposed to you and now Chloé's in prison for forcing herself on him. And I can assume that you'll turn Marinette into a fairy somehow?" Alya said with a laugh.

"Y-Yeah." Adrien said, a blush on his cheeks, while thinking, _'At least it wasn't the OTHER cat that got out of the bag.'_

"Alya..." Marinette began.

"No worries, girl," Alya said with a wave of her hand. "I can keep a secret. Just let me be your maid of honor in exchange, got it?"

"Deal." Marinette laughed.

Adrien shrunk the two of them down, then flew off with Marinette in his arms all the way back to his home.

* * *

_Epilogue_

_All was right with the world after that. Chloé had been tried and found guilty for her crimes, and was sentenced to 30 years in the fairy prisons without parole._

_Three years later, Marinette and Adrien had their wedding. They had it in the fairy castle on the outskirts of the city, in a more rural area in France._

"Anything that you desire, anything at all..."

_They were standing in front of the officiant in front of the same tree that his parents had their wedding at. They were surrounded by a huge meadow of flowers. The audience consisted of Marinette's friends and classmates (barring Lila Rossi and Chloé), Adrien's father and maternal family (his cousin Félix and his aunt Amélie)._

_Marinette made her own wedding dress, combining her mother's heritage with European styles. A cheongsam top and neckline with a princess skirt and hemline. Adrien was in his official prince uniform for the wedding. Marinette also fulfilled her promise to Alya to make her the maid of honor. Meanwhile, Adrien became best friends with Nino and asked him to be the best man (Félix was too grouchy and too much of a jerk for the role). They were also using the wedding rings that Gabriel and Emilie used, too._

"Every day I'll take you higher, and I'll never let you fall..."

_"Do you, Adrien Agreste, take Marinette Dupain-Cheng to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, or for better or for worse, until death do you part?" The officiant asked. _

_"I do." Adrien said. _

_"Do you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, take Adrien Agreste __to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, or for better or for worse, until death do you part?" The officiant repeated to Marinette. _

_"I do." Marinette said._

_"By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you fa- er, man and wife!" The officiant announced. _

_Adrien yanked Marinette towards him and dipped her over his knee, pressing a kiss to her lips. _

_Everyone cheered for Marinette and Adrien. While still stoic, Gabriel cracked a smile and started clapping a bit. _

_The rest of the reception and the day went off without a hitch. _

_That evening, when Marinette and Adrien were alone at the estate..._

_Nathalie was asking one of the royal spellcasters to create the spell to permanently turn a person into a fairy. _

_"Are you ready for this, Marinette?" Adrien asked. _

_"I'm ready." Marinette said. _

_The spell caster threw the glowing, sparkling green ball that the spellcaster towards Marinette. It hovered over her, dusting her in its sparkles. She started glowing faintly, and slowly but surely, transparent pink wings started to grow on her back. Once they were grown in, she started fluttering them and started flying off the ground a little bit. _

_"I... I have wings! My own wings!" Marinette squealed before beginning to fly around the room. She was cheering with delight. _

_She then flew into her husband's embrace, landing a kiss on his lips. _

"And always follow your heart!"

_And with the work a relationship takes, the love they had for each other... The two of them lived happily ever after.  
_

* * *

**Whew! Done, finally! Now I can cross this off my list. Glad it's done, too. I wanna get back to my Lukanette stories and "Wedding ****Ladybug," too. **


End file.
